The announcement that Katie Couric will anchor a news program for Yahoo is a marker of significant change to how, when and where we access news, information and entertainment. That Yahoo is able to attract a star of Couric’s stature speaks to the extent of the changes we are experiencing. This is media disruption!
This move is about much more than the disruption of print by websites that we all talked about years ago. The changes occurring now are about breaking down the mega-channels of old media by disruptive mobile and related businesses. It’s not so much about whether people will switch from TV to Yahoo to watch Couric as it is about those already in the spas-pit in which Yahoo plays who will engage more because of Couric.
Mobile is the medium of the moment for news, information, entertainment and shopping. All of us need to understand the scope of what is happening here. The Couric announcement is a marker of the scope of change. The House of Cards TV show starring Kevin Spacey is another example of the shift.
Sorry – who is Katie Couric ??
Ian, Katie is a high profile American TV journalist. She’s considered a household name in the US.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katie_Couric
Her star stature and US$40M annual pay are what makes the move a game-changer.
Hey,
I’m with Ian – who is she and who really cares? Ar … a global news anchor!
So lets get this right she sits and reads the news?
I suppose the real issue for me is whats Yahoo News?
Maybe I’m just not connected to the digital world yet!
John
40mill bucks to read the news ?
I’d do it for half that, and I may even be prettier than the lovely Katie.
What makes these Celebs so special other than the fact that their mates have made them Celebs……….
HoHum……….
I’ve probably missed the point here Mark, sorry mate.
$40million is here salary for all her work at ABC – both in news and hosting her own daytime talk show.
Katie would have to be the highest profile journalist/celebrity/news anchor to make the transition to digital-only. As Mark says, her star power makes this move a game changer.
It’s not that big of a deal here in Australia because she’s an American celebrity for American news and entertainment. Yahoo news is also relatively US-centric so also not a big deal here.
However the point is that here move is being made in the largest, most competitive television market in the world. It gives incredible credence to the idea that online content has a strong future and old media is waning.
Jarryd,
Old media is alive. The new media still cannot pay its bills – if it needed to do the news collection, without print backing it up.
Really all we have here is journo going to the highest bidder – the bidder hoping it will pay off in advertising $$$.
Sometimes it works but not always.
Good on Katie if she’s found an organization to pay her $40m – but like executive salaries etc this amount of money cannot be justified in any logical way when we have staving millions on our planet.
John
John people will look back on this moment as a marker of significant change in this part of the old media world. That’s the point I am writing about. That we’re part of the old media world is what makes it relevant to us.
A lot of investors throwing money at disruptive industry models, none (including Amazon) of which have or even look like making a buck. Sadly no-one watched Katie when she was on free to air, so Im not sure anyone will rush to watch her on Yahoo. This is a long game (20 to 30 years) and I suspect digital media needs an alternative monetisation model other than further diluting a highly fragmented and cyclical advertising market. I cant help thinking how inexpensive living must have been before the days of iphones, ipads, phone plans, cable tv etc etc. I dont recall it being that bad or feeling uninformed.
Is Yahoo still a thing?