In December 2007, the US economy was at its worst as unemployment was at an all time high, the federal debt crisis became shockingly real, and home foreclosures were an epidemic across the nation. While the recession supposedly ended in 2009, the effects on content production remain to this day. 

After all, what did bloggers do when their advertising CPMs dropped to less than 75 percent of their original fetching price? They simply produced more content at a faster rate in order to drive huge traffic spikes during the height of campaigns. We attempted to feed and clothe ourselves by producing a glut of content. 

As the volume of news increased everyday, aggregation sites became more palatable to the mainstream consumer audience. That being said, as the effort and time spent on reporting individual stories decreased, curation became a daunting, game to play. After all, while it’s necessary, it’s not much fun sorting through content being rushed at dizzying speeds through a colossal firehose.

Even as the advertising and publishing industries bounce back from an inconceivable blow, the current patterns of payment remain focused on rewarding quantity over quality. There appears to be a surplus of similar content. 

Perhaps this is a tip of the hat to the idea of an Eternal September or a lament for what Andrew Keen dubs the Cult of the Amateur but I’m tired of watching the world of the web on a hamster wheel.

Advertising (other than in the usual 3rd quarter) is up, subscription news is becoming a real option, and the public appears willing to pay for convenient curation. As my friend Chris Lee points out with the examples of NetFlix, Hulu and Rdio, “Suddenly the $3 to 10 dollars subscription is simply the rate at which people value their life’s hourly/monthly rate”.

But convenience in technology isn’t the only reason content earns revenue, as that content must still add value to people’s lives. Publishers are considering new models where they can produce less, think more and curate well. Those with the shared goal of empowering expertise and increasing the true body of knowledge on the web still have a great opportunity to leave a legacy and make money doing it. I’m excited for our next steps.