Developments of the Future (Part 2)

Bill Densmore and Information Valet

Bill Densmore, one of six Fellows of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute presented the idea of the Information Valet. Essentially it is a means of assembling publishers, advertisers, technological and financial service companies to allow for easy busying and selling of content.

Information Valet consists of a single ID and password, account, and bill across multiple websites. Users would have to pay for access to certain websites but would also be paid for looking at others. It is understood all across the field that journalism needs to change online if it is to survive, and Information Valet is meant to be a way to prevent its untimely death.

Information Valet is expected to be launched in 8 months. It should be noted that Densmore questioned the crowd a number of times about how they would react to the costs of the idea and most people indicated they would be willing to pay if easy, cheap, necessary and unique sources/stories were provided by the product.

Steve Hanson and Hanson Inc.’s Magnify Platform

Steve Hanson, who was also the moderator/time keeper of the event, presented the Magnify Platform which was a handy tool as well. He showed how it worked with a website called Backstage, one of the many companies that his company, Hanson Inc., works with. The Magnify Platform essentially searches on popular sites for video and photos and organizes them in a manner that appears just like the website it is used on (“a seamless transition”) with advertisements on the side that provide funding.

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