Marshall McLuhan high priest of pop culture, talked about the “medium” being the message in regards to TV and other forms of PR/mass messaging. I’m a big MM fan, so I respectfully posit that nowadays the Media is the message. No matter what your content, how are you getting it out to the public? Are they able to consume your message in whatever format they want, be it live (streaming online), recorded (on your site via mp3, mov, avi, etc.) or via RSS/podcast (so they can subscribe)? Remember that how people like to consume media does not reflect on your content; it’s just a question of their preference as to when/where they like to listen/watch their podcasts/videos.

To that end, the Association of Downloadble Media is working to protect, enliven, and extend the power of online media so media creators, networks, advertisers, and consumers will all be able to benefit from great content for years to come. By establishing common metrics that define the value proposition across the whole spectrum of online content, we hope to clarify the best ways for content to be consumed so that engaging in the material you want is as seamless as possible. If you’re a content creator, having specific metrics and standards for your material means you can demonstrate to your audience who listens to your shows more accurately, whether or not you want to monetize.

Podcasters and vloggers work very hard to listen to and communicate effectively to their audience, and having uniform standards across all platforms online means they’ll be able to speak more accurately to their audience. For advertisers, having these standards means they can approach content creators with CPM’s/advertising deals while speaking a common language with content creators. If a podcaster, for instance, posts a link to their (hypothetical and potential) ADM badge that lists how many listeners they have, general demographics, and their media kit, an advertiser will know if that podcaster/show is someone they’d like to work with right away. In this regard, having a common metric/set of standards will expedite the process of people working together to monetize and distribute content online. Think of it as speed networking online where everyone speaks the same language right away, and people can say what they’re hoping from a relationship to help speed the process of people potentially working together. Read more »