2010's Top Digital Content & Tech Trends - What News Leaders Need to Know

By Annalisa Burgos, RTDNA@NAB Editorial Coverage Team

Technology is revolutionizing the news business, but are we really leveraging the opportunities out there?

During a session with Chip Mahaney, director of digital content for E.W. Scripps Company, attendees heard about several interesting digital and content trends that news leaders need to know. Here are a few notable trends:

· Future-time web. While real-time web refers to live-streaming services like Facebook and Twitter feeds, future-time web refers to people using real-time data to predict what will happen next. Mahaney points to services like Stocktwits, TwitScoop and Twitter’s Trending Topics. There is so much data being generated from the real-time web, and people are finding creative ways to use them, Mahaney said.

· Managing the “back channel.” This refers to an alternative forum people use to discuss events while they are happening, kind of like a side conversation. He cited one example where people attending a panel used Meebo to discuss the presentation and engage each other. As news leaders, we need to know how to manage the back channel so we know what people are talking about behind our backs, Mahaney said.



· Movement from sites to apps. Some people argue that the use of apps for mobile devices will surpass web surfing. Useful apps like Mashable allow users to conveniently access information they want on the go, building loyalty in the process.

"When you get apps, you're not searching anymore. You're letting the news come to you," Mahaney said.

· Connected TV, IPTV, Google TV. Companies are using technology to make TV more interactive to engage audiences. · Mobile TV. Mahaney pointed new business models like Pearl Mobile DTV, a new mobile content service and joint venture of 12 major media companies including Scripps, NBC and Fox, which will distribute their content to mobile devices.



· Geolocation. "Geochrono" means knowing where people are and when they are at a particular place. This comes in handy for news organizations who want to locate and verify the credibility of eyewitnesses of a news event.

· Hyperlocal and hypertopical. People want news and information that is more personally relevant to them and their community.

· Newsroom versus information center. News leaders may want to rethink the way they see content in their organizations in terms of value derived from the product and the effort required to produce it. Mahaney also suggested looking at the “long tail” –content owned by news organizations (such as archives) that can offer more value because there is no additional cost involved to use it.