www.astech-intermedia.com

The Information Intermediary:

A Business Model for the Newsmedia?

The Consumer Perspective

• Myth: The Internet has made purchasing simpler for the consumer

• Reality: Consumption has become more complicated through: – Product & merchant proliferation

– Media intrusion

– Privacy concerns

• More vendors – more advertising – more intrusion

• “Trust” becomes key asset to institutions that can earn it

• Consumers seek value, relevance, simplification & protection

• Will share data with entities capable of delivering these

• These entities are “information intermediaries” or…

• “INFOMEDIARIES”

NET WORTH by Marc Singer and John Hagel

“Customers will become more open about what they share with vendors as

their privacy becomes better protected and their personal information

generates value.”

“Customers will find that, by providing information about themselves to the

Infomediary, they can substantially reduce search costs and increase the

likelihood of purchasing the best possible product at the lowest price.”

“Relying on the Infomediary, clients will find that they can extract value from

vendors in return for more information about themselves, whether that

value is in the form of cash payments or tailored products and services.”

The Merchant Perspective

• Economic volatility mandates focus on marketing ROI

• Metrics are essential – Migration to channels that can be readily measured

– Pace of migration has accelerated

• Premium on efficiency, productivity – Optimized through channel integration

Traditional Advertising Model

Infomediary Model

INFOMEDIARY •Print

•Email

•SMS, RSS

•Social Media

•Snail Mail

•Telemarketing

Who Logically Ascends to the Infomediary Role?

• Google?

• Yahoo?

• eBay?

• Amazon?

• Microsoft?

• Apple?

• AT&T?

• Or….

Could it be the “Newspaper?”

• Brand strength & recognition

• Integrity – credibility – trust

• Wide range of consumer “touch points”

• Unique, robust, relevant data on consumer and business constituencies

• Multiple channels of (integrated?) distribution

• Merchant relationships

“Newspapers are not commodities!!!”

Greg Bright

Arizona Republic

August 23, 2009

How Does the Industry Monetize the Concept?

• Modification of traditional model?

• Pay for performance?

• Outsourcing?

How Does the Industry Monetize the Concept?

INFOMEDIARY •Print

•Email

•SMS, RSS

•Twitter

•Snail Mail

•Telemarketing

How Do We Get There?

• Build the information infrastructure

• Enhance interactivity

• Ensure privacy

• Diversify & integrate channels of communication

• Transform the account team

• Invest in the brand – create the “PASSION”

Dean Singleton, MediaNews Group

“It is indeed a delicious irony that the oldest communications medium is

emerging as the most modern, most high-tech, and most successful.”