Trendwatching

First published in February 2004 | No, this is not about a new niche generation of youngsters born between March 12, 1988 and April 24, 1993; the C stands for CONTENT, and anyone with even a tiny amount of creative talent can (and probably will) be part of this not-so-exclusive trend.

So what is it all about? The GENERATION C phenomenon captures the an avalanche of consumer generated 'content' that is building on the Web, adding tera-peta bytes of new text, images, audio and video on an ongoing basis.

The two main drivers fuelling this trend? (1) The creative urges each consumer undeniably possesses. We're all artists, but until now we neither had the guts nor the means to go all out. (2) The manufacturers of content-creating tools, who relentlessly push us to unleash that creativity, using -- of course -- their ever cheaper, ever more powerful gadgets and gizmos. Instead of asking consumers to watch, to listen, to play, to passively consume, the race is on to get them to create, to produce, and to participate.

Examples?

It's Canon telling aspiring directors and photographers that "professional digital photography is no longer just for the professionals", while Sony speaks directly to Home Movie Directors and DVD Producers.

It's the Vodafones and Oranges and AT&Ts and T-Mobiles and O2s and Sprints and NTT DoCoMos enticing consumers to go snap-crazy with their camera-phones, uploading pics to dedicated MMS websites. Conservative estimates are that by 2008, more than 380 million camera phones will have been sold worldwide. With the first 1.3 MegaPixel phone already spotted, the upcoming deluge of cam-pics and movies will be of biblical proportions.

It's HP spending USD 300 million on a campaign telling consumers it's all about 'You', and 'You' should be taking pictures, and sharing them and forwarding and printing them, AND posting photographic essays on a HP web site.

It's Blogger offering you "instant communication power by letting you post your thoughts to the web whenever the urge strikes". Which is exactly what 5 million people have done so far, and what tens of millions of others will soon do, too.

It's Xingtone.com, letting consumers compose their own ringtones, and Sony PlayStation2's Noiseupthesuburbs.com inviting an emerging generation of DIY music pioneers, from bedroom DJs and producers to pirate radio and independent label founders, to make use of its music-making software.

And so on.

Don't get us wrong: superior tools and no talent still equals useless content. GENERATION C is and will continue to create heaps and heaps of crap which, at best, will be appreciated only by inner-circle friends and family.

However, when Canon (see above) tells consumers that its products 'leave one difference between you and a professional. They get paid', they're kind of behind already: talented members of GENERATION C actually DO get paid, as their stories, their observations, their articles, their pictures, their songs, and their books are noticed and bought by niche audiences, as well as (increasingly) by mass-media moguls eager for real-time, original content. Think thousands of 'My News' citizen reporters in South Korea, or tens of thousands of bloggers building personal brands (and thus warranting professional fees, and reaping advertising revenues). Or eBay-style marketplaces for content like lulu.com andredpaper.com, the latter describing itself as "a place on the Internet where any type of digital content no mater how abstract can be bought and sold by anyone interested in transacting it". Or the guy who recently created a feature length movie on his iMac using iMovie, for USD 218.32, which was apparently good enough to be shown at Sundance last month, with Gus Van Sant's backing.

From a business and money point of view, this trend truly has something to offer to everyone!

OPPORTUNITIES
GENERATION C is where some of TRENDWATCHING.COM's other Big Trends converge: it's fueled by ONLINE OXYGEN as the required online access to content channels is becoming universal. It's about OLDBIES: hundreds of millions of consumers who, since first dipping their toes into the online revolution a few years ago, are becoming comfortable with digital creation. And it's about MASS CLASS and MATURIALISM as consumers all over the world increasingly have the means to purchase or download professional-grade, powerful hardware and software needed to become part of GENERATION C.

More on GENERATION C next month, when we'll be sending you 'part II', including new business opportunities for a host of industries. In the mean time, start thinking about how to jump on this bandwagon: are you asking your customers to consume or to create? Are you partnering with new niche content players? Are you turning this avanlache of data and information into new business intelligence? This trend WILL roll on, with or without you.