CGC for CGC

Produced by: Skye7

My very own consumer-generated content for a paper about consumers as elements of an ad agency: a.k.a CGC

ADV391K : Spring 2007

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WWW: When, Why, Who

Posted Feb 03 2007 12:01AM

When: Development of the Internet
Consumer generated content, I believe, has always been there. The minute the World Wide Web was invented in 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee, scientists were given a platform to speak their minds and share their knowledge, expertise, and opinions with the all who had access to cyberspace. According to Time Magazine, the current entity isn’t synonymous with its previous name the World Wide Web. They explain it as the “a tool for bringing together the small contributions of millions of people and making them matter” (Grossman).

Why: What was/is the purpose of the Internet
This “revolution” to some is called Web.2.0 (Grossman). “It’s the idea that the ‘new’ fluid Internet model will be based on user interaction and contribution” (Sauer). “It’s a massive social experiment, and like any experiment worth trying, it could fail” (Grossman). But, most of those in the industry feel as though it is foreshadowing for the future.

Who: Who holds the reigns in the advertising industry
Steve Rosenblum, one of the first creators and CEO of a user-generated content firm, Magnify.net, explains that before this “significant change,” consumers had already started making their own ads for brands. However, without the endorsements of the brand itself, these creative ads never saw the light of mainstream media, until viral-video sharing sites emerged (Vagnoni). “Consumers have felt out of control, under controlled, or at the whim of the marketplace, and so now they have a venue to exercise (their opinion) and by golly they are going to (use it)” (Kincaid). And by using this outlet, they have gathered enough momentum to begin pulling the control over to the consumer.