In 2008 the teenager Charlie McDonnell amassed thousands of fans with his "Charlieissocoollike" video blog on YouTube and was asked to appear on television with Whoopi Goldberg after blogging about "How to be English". The teenager, from Bath, Somerset, began flming the blogs in his bedroom in April 2008 and had no idea that anyone outside of his friends and family would log on. But his tongue-in-cheek videos provoked a massive response and by August 2009 he had over 174,000 fans who subscribe to his regular blog updates. In October 2009 Charlie was a guest of Google UK presenting as part of their Day in a life series. One of the interesting insights Charlie made was about his [media] consumption trends as a "digital native".  He explained how he tried not to follow traditional media sources like the BBC but instead follows blogs of people he is interested in which tend to present stories he will be interested in. This of course means that we have a gen-eration that don't always follow conventional media routes and therefore provide marketing audiences that present new opportunities for Cloud and Web 2.0 led companies willing to reach their audiences through new media routes.

In 2008 managers at CNN spoke about the future of television and how it is changing. YouTube is mentioned in the article as being a champion of online viewing. The Google-owned site now features professionally produced videos from CBS, TNT and others.

You Tube should present an alarming sign to all TV media and at the same time should force them to come up with new solutions. YouTube needs to remain easily accessible in order to not be threatened by the rapidly evolving technology. It needs to focus beyond PC screens and onto other video displays: mobile phones, handheld players, and most important, the living room television. A recent survey of 14-19 year olds showed that they would be willing to substitute up to a quarter of their current TV viewing with amateur videos if the clips were easily accessible on TV.  Another threat is the fact that the popularity of YouTube far outstrips its revenue generation.

As Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt once insisted, “YouTube ultimately will be very proftable. The challenge is fnding the right business models, which is why Google is experimenting with ways to present ads that are more localised and entertaining.” Other threats involve continental competition like MyVideo and Dailymotion.

Cloud computing is not just about using technology within the Internet, it is also about embracing tools and techniques that live within the Cloud to enhance our business success. When it comes to marketing, understanding your younger audience like Charlieissocoollike will clearly go a long way in helping create your media presence be it online or through more traditional routes.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Besides being an enthusiastic photographer, Richard Gough is a senior IT professional who has extensive experience in IT Operations Management, Service Delivery, Information Security and Programme Project Management working at the executive board level.