Communities Dominate Brands

Corrupting Capitalism - privatising war and reconstruction. Has it all gone Pete Tong?

The theme of the rise of consumerism over all of our lives is a something I am currently thinking about. And have thought about. Exhibit A – Companies are from Mars and Customers are from Venus.

I find it a difficult moral place to exist in. On the one hand my company SMLXL is all about enabling customers and brands to better engage with eachother. And I consult and work with companies to enable them to be commercially more successful.

But as Tomi and I have gone deeper into the possibilites of the networked world what we see are the possibilites not only of an evolved media and business ecology that redefines communications, media and commerce, but also starts to restructure the possibilites of society. Potentially in a positive way. But its not all black and white.

My thoughts were brought into sharper focus recently. By the publishing of Naomi Kleins book The Shock Doctrine, the thesis of which is that free markets thrive on freedom is a lie. You can read here major thought piece here

Klein points to the disaster capitalism as she describes it, that took place in the aftermath of the New Orleans natural disaster.

In sharp contrast to the glacial pace with which the levees were repaired and the electricity grid brought back online, the auctioning-off of New Orleans' school system took place with military speed and precision. Within 19 months, with most of the city's poor residents still in exile, New Orleans' public school system had been almost completely replaced by privately run charter schools.

Klein attacks Milton Friedman as the architect of this strategy that has been applied in many countries around the world. In makes me feel uneasy. But it goes right back to 1947, right after the war, which frames the thinking contextually. words by George Monbiot in his piece How the neoliberals stitched up the wealth of nations for themselves

When the Mont Pelerin Society first met, in 1947, its political project did not have a name. But it knew where it was going. The society's founder, Friedrich von Hayek, remarked that the battle for ideas would take at least a generation to win, but he knew that his intellectual army would attract powerful backers. Its philosophy, which later came to be known as neoliberalism, accorded with the interests of the ultra-rich, so the ultra-rich would pay for it.

Neoliberalism claims that we are best served by maximum market freedom and minimum intervention by the state. The role of government should be confined to creating and defending markets, protecting private property and defending the realm. All other functions are better discharged by private enterprise, which will be prompted by the profit motive to supply essential services. By this means, enterprise is liberated, rational decisions are made and citizens are freed from the dehumanising hand of the state.

Will Hutton in reviewing Kleins book informs us where this has got us..

Her account of the ideological zealotry, stupidity and greed that informed how Iraqi reconstruction was handled is among the most original and revealing in the book. The ambition to have low taxes, minimal regulation, no state, free markets, low tariffs and maximum corporate involvement because they conformed to the free-market blueprint distorted economic priorities and generated huge opportunities for waste and racketeering.

Worse, they involved a scorched-earth policy towards Iraqi institutions that created the vacuum occupied by the sectarian, murderous militias. It was the true denouement of disaster capitalism.

And again this makes me feel uncomfortable. Good old Don Rumsfeld, got a $37m payout when he left Haliburton

But it cannot be one thing or the other. There are times on this blog Tomi and I will push the envelope. Perhaps we need the Kleins of this world? However Huttons view is that...

her delusional, Manichaean world view, privatisation, free markets, private property, consumer freedom, the profit motive and economic freedom are just other terms for corporate self-enrichment, denial of voice, limitation of citizenship, inequality and, sometimes, even torture. The discredited electro-shock psychological treatment of the Fifties, we learn, informed the thought system of the free marketeers; it is guilt by association and assertion rather than proof, a weaknesses of too much of the book.

Nothing good can ever come from globalisation, which is just more capitalism. Democracy, however, is a halcyon world of political and economic co-operation, citizen voice and engagement, with a freely arrived- at assertion of the common interest in which most think along the same lines as, say, Naomi Klein. She and free-market economist Milton Friedman, whom she has in her sights, are mirror images of each other in the absolutist categories in which they think.

Government by TV

Jeez, don't these people have somethig better to watch

Government by TV: Chávez sets 8-hour record. Aló Presidente show is longest yet display of politics and showmanship

The Venezuelan president, Hugo Chávez. Photograph: Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images

The fierce morning heat was a memory. The afternoon haze had come and gone. It was the cool of dusk, with shadows stretching as the sun dipped below the Andes. And Hugo Chávez was still talking. The clock showed it was just after 7pm. The Venezuelan president had started at 11am, more than eight hours earlier - a new record. He looked into the camera and grinned: "The first time in history.

I don't think I could take 8 hours of someone, anyone. Retail politics at its finest. I guess if you have a monopoly its no bad thing.

Its one great big advertorial.

Dont be a bystander to the power of networks and engagement

say David Cushman in his post Don't just witness the network. Be part of it

David explains

In this world there’s no need for mass media. Mass media is about the lowest common denominator – pleasing as many people as possible for as much of the time as possible.

But the possibilities are now much greater. Now there are tools available which allow anyone to please themselves – and their self-selecting groups of shared interest - all of the time.

Mass Media was always about offering you a load of content you didn’t want (literally in the case of magazines) stapled to content you did.

Where digital content applies, now the user can choose exactly the content they want, and only the content they want.

This disaggregation leads to one-to-one relationships between relevant content and relevant selling opportunity. Advertising is no longer about reaching the maximum number of any-old eyeballs. Now it is about reaching the optimum number of the exact right eyeballs. And if there’s no need for a mass audience for advertising eyeballs, what role is left for mass media?

Interruptive ads on TV aren’t working, we’ve stopped looking at the banner ads on websites and we tune away the moment an ad appears on radio - if we are still putting up with our listening choices being made centrally for us

David then goes onto say

In the networked world community – not OUR content – is king.

The network creates, responds, controls… creates value.

There are new rules:

1. Serve the community first

2. Niche global NOT mass.

3. Two-way flows – NOT broadcast

4. Networks NOT Silos

5. Power of the node over power vested in hierarchies

6. Adhoc, self-forming communities over directed teams.

7. Persistent conversation trumps ‘capturing’ ID.

8. Real-time, niche-community-focused, user-generated information over News

9. We should all act as shared contributors to and users of common pool resources.

10. We should learn to cherish Group Forming Network Theory (Reed’s law).

Networks are about faciliation, and utility, enabling me, simplfying, and enabling me to better navigate my life choices, wishes and desires.

Mobile Phones - Education and Mobile minds

An indepth look at youth, education and mobile phones

Have a gander here

Mobile is without doubt the 7th Mass Media, inextricably linked to how young people are interacting with each other. in 2006 35bn txt messages were sent in the UK.

The film looks at the good the bad and the ugly. But the film also descibes that we are social animals, we want to be able to connect, children are able to engage with their learning in a completely new way. Is that not what play is all about interacting, co-creating, engaging. Not braodcasting.

I was at London Metropolitan University with my daughter today. I was told lecturers are using SMS voting, or using SMS for students to ask questions further to the lesson and the module.

This is the good side - cyber bullying and discipline are also dicussed.

Films of teachers are now uploaded onto YouTube.

But again its about romancing the technology and a need for etiquette. Howard Rheingold calls them technologies of co-operation and Benkler has described this as the wealth of networks

One teacher says, the genie is out of the bootle and you can't put it back.

We struggle to comprehend the chnages to culture that is happening around us. But as Tomi and I have discussed a few times when Gen 'C' go into the work place they will take that social nertworking capability with them.

and that is what this blog and our research is all about.

Its not a lot to ask for - is it?

From the BBC

Katrin posted on our blog

Alan, thanks for this. Some of the footage, taken at great personal risk with mobiles and other cameras, and then smuggled out for people like us around the world to see, is truly moving, courageous, and incredibly powerful. We have been tracking the pictures over at http://mobileactive.org/ and it seems that a lot of it is still coming out via mobile though there are some reports that the mobile carriers are now completely shut down and Internet bandwidth throttled.

There is an incredibly beautiful and poignant picture at http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/in_pictures/7013852.stm that shows a hand-made sign: May all beings always well and happy, may they be free from danger and enmity, may they live peacefully.

The thoughts and prayers and most heartfelt wishes for a free and democratic Burma from the community at Mobileactive.org are with the monks and protesters.

And of course we have the usual bullshit going on in the UN. Colin Powell stood before all to provide fabricated evidence with which to beat the drums of war for Iraq. Nice one Colin. I hear you still have some traces of credibility left intact.

Here we have the evidence, and like Kosovo or Darfur who is actually going to pull their finger out and DO something about it.

Cyworld meets SeeMeTV (or Habbo meets MyNuMo) - Vodafone NZ Self Central

On the Mobile Monday event in Amsterdam the other guest speaker was Giles Richter, the CEO of Mowave. Mowave has been doing work on the social networking/community project for Vodafone New Zealand. And would you know it, there is a remarkable similarity in look-and-feel to our faves, Habbo and Cyworld. Yes, you have your customizable avatars and your room and your personalization etc. It is called Self Central (which with New Zealander pronounciation is very close to South Central).

But the beautiful part, they have of course adopted ideas from other brilliant services - again faves of our blog. The idea that with user-generated content, the user should be paid a revenue-share. Like SeeMeTV innovated in the various Hutchison/Three 3G mobile telecoms services from the UK and Italy on down, and for example MyNuMo has deployed independently in the USA etc. On Vodafone NZ's Self Central, the revenue sharing component is 20%. Great innovation Mowave. We want to see more of these ideas around !

Communities dominate Burmese Juntas

I spoke on Radio 4 today, where Mike Short pointed out that Mobile phones enabled us to get a better insight into what exactly the Military Junta were doing to try and suppress the Peoples cry for a free society. Via video, pictures and SMS.

We all deserve a free society, and I say lets see if communties cannot dominate bad dictorships.

As Bob Marley sang

Get up stand up. Stand up for your rights. Get up stand up dont give up without a fight

I ask every one of our readers to become one voice in saying that Burmese people deserve a better life.

Please join me in that effort with your support at this blogsite or elsewhere.

To support these people. If we can collectively apply pressure it becomes a bigger voice.

I have never before asked our readership to participate. But I ask you now lend your support, And make your voice heard.

The BBC says

Thousands of Buddhist monks have protested in several Burmese cities in escalating protests against the military government. In the western port city of Sittwe, nearly 2,000 monks demanded the release of four monks arrested on Tuesday.

About 1,000 monks marched through Mandalay, and several hundred more in Rangoon, the former capital.

And today we hear of beatings a nun died and the knifing to death and shooting of buddhist monks

And this is from the Guardian

Around 1,000 Buddhist monks, flanked by thousands of onlookers, marched through Burma's principal city today as the protests against the country's military regime gathered momentum. One group of monks assembled at the famous hilltop Shwedagon pagoda in Rangoon before marching through the city centre, pausing briefly outside the US embassy.

Thousands of city residents walked alongside or behind them in heavy rain to form a protective human chain around the monks as they prayed at the Sule pagoda in the centre of Rangoon, Burma's capital until last year.

Some of the monks reportedly carried small banners that summarized the grievances of the public: “Sufficiency in food, clothing and shelter, national reconciliation, freedom for all political prisoners.

Surely its not a lot to ask for?

So military Junta I hope you are watching because WE ARE

A head-on collision in the world of commerce and creative commons

My very good friend Ian Kirk and a great brand strategist BTW sent me this link Creative Commons sued for deception

And it presents a very moral dilemma. Based upon the Jordan principle (AKA Katie Price) what you see in front of you is perhaps not always the full story.

So this is the story

A film maker, Damon Chang, uploaded a family photograph of his young niece Alison to Flickr, only to discover weeks later that it was being used by Virgin Mobile in an expensive advertising campaign. Neither Alison Chang nor her youth counsellor Justin Wong, who took the photograph, have received compensation for the use of the image - having handed over the rights without realizing it. Damon Chang used a license which permits commercial reuse - and even derivative works to be made - without payment or permission of the photographer: merely a credit will do to satisfy the terms of the license.

Both Changs believe the use of the photograph was insulting and demeaning, as Alison - a minor - became known as the "dump your pen friend girl". And after taking legal advice, the Chang family is now suing Virgin Mobile USA and the Creative Common Corporation.

Virgin hoovered up over 100 "user generated" images for its ad campaign - saving itself a fortune. The lawsuit accuses Virgin of invasion of privacy, libel and breach of contract - as the advertiser failed even to do that. But it's the section of the lawsuit that names and shames Creative Commons that promises have lasting consequences for "Web 2.0" and "user generated content".

Is it outrageous that Virgin mobile "nicked these images" legally, is it outrageous that 57 million people were illegally downloading music files at Napster before it was shut down in its orginal incarnation? Is is morally, and legally outrageous that so much content is ripped off and played out on YouTube?

The pendulum always, always swings in 2 directions. Creative Commons is utopian in many senses, the idea that ideas and information should not be locked down.

The notion of a shared culture is better than a notion of a locked down culture. Creative Commons is part of that idea. Though recognition should be due of where that source came from.

For me, we know there are some people out there claiming our concept of the 4C's: Commerce, Culture, Community and Connectivity as their own, and even use our slides, without ever referring to the source.

Does it piss me off. Yes it does, what can I do about it nothing. But then I belive in Karmarama, and at some point that person will be shown to be a fraud and lacking in any orginal ideas.

Tomi and I have more ideas than you could shake a stick at. Anyway I digress.

Rather than the Changs suing everyone, very much a US mindset, why not use Facebok, Myspace and other community platforms to ensure Virgin Mobile look foolish and stupid.

Leverage the power of your community Changs. I feel your pain, but like the principles of free speech in democracy, there are those that choose to abuse it. Does that mean we lock down everyones liberties as a consequence? (Big debate I know)

By signing up to the legal lock down culture, you become one of them.

Do some culture jamming and make Virgin Mobile look like the fools they are. Common courtesy is something I do believe in, so it would not have hurt Virgin to have least behaved in a mature and adult manner. Ultimately its their behaviour that reflects badly on them and damages their brand.

Play them at their own game.

Now then where's the number of the dickhead that is using our 4C's slides (only joking)

Thanks to MoMo Amsterdam and Emap Peterborough

I am rushing rather madly at this time of year, but I've had two exceptionally nice events this week, doing a presentation with Mobile Monday in Amsterdam and now yesterday in Peterborough a private workshop with Emap. I made tons of new friends and had lots of very stimulating discussions long into the evenings. There is a clear buzz developing in our industry and it brings an electricity and excitement level that is exhilirating to me as a speaker. Thank you all MoMo organizers and thanks to all at Emap and its friends on Tuesday.

Now I look forward to hearing about the next steps you guys take in the various projects and ideas we discussed. Do let us know here at Communities Dominate blog and we'll help spread those stories..

Blyk, Blyk Blyk, what makes it tick? Answer me quick, is it really that slick?

Yes it is..

I am very impressed with the way Blyk is emerging into our consciousness. Age limits of who can't have the service? Yes, its not like previous operators, MVNO's and operator sub-brands, with target ages. Blyk actually will not let you sign up if you're only 15 years old, and it will not accept any "old fogies" who are 25 or above..

This is certainly the total opposite of just about everyone in mobile telecoms, who tend to try to be everything to everybody.

So then there is the exclusivity of being invitation-only? What? You cannot call them up and sign up? No, this mobile operator actually says you can't get it, unless you get invited into the club. Good thinking, very much different from the status quo.

I think these have very good beginnings to help to try to differentiate Blyk customers from the Vodafones and O2s and T-Mobiles of their parents. Blyk is not at all like your parents' phone service. Its like the recent trends in ringing tones, now young people are running away from consuming ringing tones. And clearly one of the reasons is, that their parents consume ringing tones. If the parents do it, then for a 17 year old, its not at all a cool thing for the teenager to do..

Can it work? 217 messages per month (ie exactly 7 per day on a 31 day month) and 42 minutes of voice calls (4 minutes every 3 days). That is not much. But Blyk is a SIM card based MVNO service. No Blyk branded phones. So every 16-24 year old who wants to use the Blyk SIM card, has to have some existing phone to use. And in most cases that person thus also has an active SIM card on another network.

Who cares if the 217 messages run out 3 weeks into the month (or even much earlier). Yes, after that the youth will stick in the old SIM card of one of the big incumbents, and pay normal rates as they did up to now. But for a week or two or three out of every month, the youth can get free messages and calls by using the Blyk SIM cards.

I think this will work from being cool and desirable for the youth target group.

Can it work as a business, will the advertisers come? Here the impressive line-up of 40 global brands starting with Coca Cola is very convincing.

What we need to find out is the extent of the data mining and customer profiling that Blyk can do for its advertisers. They do talk, a bit, about the profiling in some of the launch stories. I'd love to hear more. But this certainly has the potential to be VERY powerful, and leapfrog the mobile operator level targeting and segmentation accuracy.

For example in March of 2007 Vodafone UK spoke at the Mobile Youth conference, and revealed that Vodafone's current segmentation model has 14 segments (for contrast, at the same event we learned that Tesco's the UK supermarket chain has over 10,000 segments). Vodafone has under 16 million subscribers today, so it means that the average segment size is a bit over a million. That is also the level of granularity and customer insights that the Vodafone UK segmentation model could hope to deliver for any advertiser hoping to target and profile customers.

Consider these extremes. If Blyk was so weak as Vodafone UK in its segmentation, and able only to analyze its customer base to 14 segments, then out of its much tighter target customer base of 4.5 million customers, Blyk would have target segment sizes on average of 320,000 customers (already considerably more precisely targeted than Vodafone this year.

But what if Blyk has a totally modern segmentation system like Tesco's and manages say 10,000 segments? Then the granularity brings us to segment size averages of 450 customers !!!  WOW. How tightly could you make customization and personalization if the customer insight allows splitting into such precise groupings. Not "youth fans of rock music" vs "youth fans of rap music" and not EVEN of splitting customers by their fave bands - but actually splitting customer groups based on the TYPES of songs played by a given band or artist..

And yes, the boys who like skateboarding, the girls who are into mountain biking, the boys who like not only videogames, but specififically CounterStrike, versus those kids who play in World of Warcraft and so forth.

I honestly don't know exactly how precise Blyk's customer insights engine is, but if you analyze their profiling interests, clearly they are several orders of magnitude more accurate than Vodafone UK.

The Blyk website has a great example of sample Loreal interactive ad exchange. If we get customer granularity down to hundreds (or even only down to thousands rather than a million subscribers) then we can certainly filter for existing users of the Loreal brand of cosmetics !!  Not just teenager girls as our target (as we might have with a major operator today) but rather actual users of Loreal. And then - the Blyk website example - can have interactive fun with that brand, like selecting which picture of a female celebrity that girl likes. Now we combine the celebrity fun with the Loreal lipstick and before you know it, the adveritising has totally transformed into content to the teenager.

This is what Alan and I have been talking about for years. Make it engagement marketing, not only digital or interactive. One we get engagement with our target audience - THEY don't think it is advertising, they think it has become content.

So are Blyk on the right track, very clearly so, yes. Will they make it? Time will tell, but honestly, now reading the press releases from Monday and visiting their website, this company really is doing radical things to the telecoms and advertising industries. They well might end up revolutionizing both..

Great start, Blyk !!  Keep up the good work !!