Stephe's Random Thoughts

This post by Guy Kawasaki makes me happy not to be an A-List blogger – but also provides food for thought for all online marketing strategists.

How to Change the World: Forget the A-List After All

As you may have heard by now, we announced a major strategic alliance with Yahoo! Canada this week. This is a great thing for Canoe.ca and Yahoo’s users and advertisers, as we will gain access to some of Yahoo’s great tools and services, and will provide them with unique local Canadian content and classifieds services. I’m really excited about the prospects for this relationship, and the impact it will have on the Canadian online industry. At Canoe.ca our mission to be the leading CANADIAN online company, and this is a major step in that direction.

This is pretty cool – as reported by Beet.tv you can now embed NBC’s news video on your site/blog/social network. “Traditional” media is starting to get it – the days of the walled garden are over its time to engage, interact with and build a new audience.

Beet.TV: Broadcast Journalism History: NBC News Opens up Embed Code and Beet.TV Has the Debut

Further evidence – like any of us online folks needed it – that our industry is moving firmly into the mainstream of global media. One of the most important ad agencies is forecasting that online ad spending In the UK will pass TV in 2009. Canada is a little behind the UK in terms of online advertising, but I anticipate this same outcome will hit Canada a year or two later. Consumer behaviour is already there as more and more time is spent online to the detriment of other media.

Burgeoning online ad spend will pass TV next year, says WPP

Nick is a really smart guy who runs interactive at Cossette. His comments on the threat of rights issues to Canadian digital media really hit a nerve for me:

“Canadians are being locked out of a North American content marketplace. Try buying a song from Amazon’s DRM-free music offering from a Canadian IP. Try downloading the latest movie from Xbox 360 with your Canadian-located console. Try visiting Hulu.com to watch your favourite NBC show from your comfy Canadian chair.

“Being a Canadian trying to consume content within the new media landscape is becoming a lesson in frustration. The net result is the potential to become digital laggards. Currently, the Canadian offerings simply do not compete at the same level.”

To me this is one of the biggest challenges facing our industry, as Canadians become second class citizens in the North American digital media landscape.

More from his interview with Media in Canada: Nearly all major demographics now reachable online: Barbuto