"Nonsense," you might say. "At the end of the day, you need to sell something; narratives are not enough." But aren't they? Another difference between the old world and ours is that we no longer sell things. In the past, the content was used to sell stuff: Executives from manufacturing companies got their TV channel buddies to produce Soap Operas i... See more

Consequently, this late in the game Medium almost has no choice but to pivot into the #4 locus of value described above: “niche focus on the demand side [like] products and services that specific consumers use to accomplish specific jobs.” Thereafter, monetization is simply a question of: ‘what can we offer that’s scarce and who wants access to it?... See more

The apparent limitation of the ad-supported media business model is that there will never be enough traffic to satisfy the beast. But while subscription revenue is stickier and gives creators more runway and short-term security, eventually the flame that started any new project will be extinguished. A new muse will need to be found.