How Media Ecosystems Can Drive Content Sales

For many traditional media companies, the outlook is gloomy. While sales of physical goods such as CDs and DVDs continue to decline, sales of online content show little sign of replacing lost revenues. When free online content is ubiquitous and 40% of European Internet users ages 15 to 24 access content from file-sharing sites, maintaining the value of premium content looks like a difficult task. But some companies, notably games console manufacturers and Apple — with its music, video, and applications products — are building paying audiences for their content as part of media ecosystems; these are often, but not necessarily, linked to a specific device. These emerging platforms provide valuable lessons for content companies seeking to engage young users across a number of key online content areas.