Where is the Web Going?

Every now and then, somebody writes something really important about content and where it’s going. Today, that guy is Scott Karp. We’ve been a sponsor of his for several months and it’s because of posts like this one that make all of us think harder.

Maybe the reason why Nick and so many other literati are losing their patience with long form information is that it is so fundamentally inefficient and inferior to connected bits of information.

Scott’s post was written, in part, because the AP now says they’re going to charge bloggers for words taken from their content. If Scott’s post is a bit too deep for you, our buddy Stanley Bing questions the price the AP is charging:

News comes that the Associated Press, in one attempt to define the nature of content in the new media, is looking to charge online writers for use of their material — as little as five words, which would cost $12.50… 

Other things that cost $12.50:

• A cab ride from my home to my office;
• A cup of coffee and one slice of buttered toast from Michael’s Restaurant (including tax and tip); and
  
• Two magazines and a newspaper at the airport.

I think you can see that each of these things is of greater intrinsic value than five words from the Associated Press.