It seemed like such an simple move, but the impact has been greater than anyone thought.
It sounds dramatic, but Google’s move to integrate YouTube comments with its social network, Google+, have turned the internet upside down. Creators who rely on YouTube for advertising revenue are complaining the move could turn away audiences.
The backlash is growing. A petition for Google to reverse the move now has over 180,000 signatures. “Google is forcing us to make Google+ accounts and invading our social life to comment on a YouTube video and trying to take away our anonymous profile,” the petition states.
But that isn’t the only complaint. Plenty of people rely on YouTube videos for revenue – a big chunk of the entertainment and “how-to” market relies on the site. The move could potentially erase a chunk of their audience.
The decision is yet another reminder of how seemingly small decision can have a huge impact on an audience which has built around a certain type of product, and rely on that product for revenue. Digital businesses creating platforms need to be aware of how devastating their structural changes can be.
The consumerisation of the enterprise
Email marketing remains one of the top digital marketing methods, and a number of enterprise solutions have popped up as a result. But despite being around for 10 years, popular service SurveyMonkey has never offered an enterprise product – until yesterday.
The company said it would finally open a business product. Previously, businesses – even large companies – would have to sign up using an individual account.
But Chief Executive Dave Goldberg told TechCrunch he sees the company’s move as a trend towards businesses using more consumer-style apps. It’s a trend he calls the “consumerisation of the enterprise”.
Other apps have done the same thing. Last week Dropbox released an enterprise product, and marketed it as a complete rebuild of the product.
This consumerisation of the enterprise raises harsh questions for businesses living in a digital age. Do they adopt consumer-based apps which may not have as much security as they would like, and gain some functionality, or adopt a strict church-and-state policy by only using enterprise-grade apps.
Both strategies may work. But as employees demand access to their own personal tools at work, the consumerisation of the enterprise might start weighing heavily on some organisations sooner rather than later.
Virtual currencies hit a new high
Bitcoins have been rising and falling in value ever since their creation. But last night they hit a new mark – one Bitcoin is now worth over $US600. Overnight they even hit a high of $US645.
But the price isn’t just rising for no reason. In fact, it has a huge reason – Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said virtual currencies may be a good idea in the long run.
Bernanke said in a statement virtual currencies may hold long-term promise, “particularly if the innovations promote a faster, more secure and more efficient payment system”.
However, Bernanke also made a key point about regulation, saying governments have very little power to regulate these types of virtual currencies.
“In general, the Federal Reserve would only have authority to regulate a virtual currency product if it is issued by, or cleared or settled through, a banking organization that we supervise.”
The rise of virtual currencies is clearly something to which businesses should be paying attention. But as businesses wait to determine whether or not they invest in this type of virtual money, comments such as those made by Bernanke suggest governments will be keeping a closer eye on these types of currencies in the future.
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