A New Media Life Cycle is a graphic representation of the phases any new media passes through as it is deployed and consumed. The term was coined by tippingpoint labs, an online content marketing agency, in Boston, Massachusetts.
New Media Life Cycle Rationale
editSince 2008, Tippingpoint Labs has used life cycles to chart the growth and adoption of any new media channel or platform. The term New Media Life Cycle was coined by Marc Held, Tippingpoint Labs' chief geek. A new media channel is defined as a branded new media content creation or distribution service (like youtube.) A new media platform is defined as a category for new media content creation, for example: blogging, micro blogging, video sharing, slide sharing.
The life cycle analysis uses readily available traffic data from google trends or Compete.com to set the stage for the seven cycles in the New Media Life Cycle.
To see a graphic representation of the life cycle analysis: [Life Cycle of Twitter]
Seven Phases in the New Media Life Cycle
editA new media life cycle in Tippingpoint Labs interpretation comprises 7 phases:
- "Experimentation" — The first phase of the cycle is the "experimentation phase" when a new platform or channel debuts online.
- "Adoption" — In the next phase, users (outside family and friends) start to use the new platform or channel. These early adopters usually experiment heavily on the new platform and help chart its early success.
- "Gestation" — As a channel moves into the gestation phase, new users start seeing value on the platform while some of the early adopters work hard to understand the type of content that works best on the channel. It's in the gestation phase where a celebrity is usually born out of the channel.
- "Escalation" — In the escalation phase users flock en mass to the new platform. This huge surge in users generates copycat platforms and channels as the mass media and the general public start to adopt the new channel.
- "Monetization" — At the peak of the escalation phase, calls to monetize the platform or channel are heard. In addition, marketers who co-opted the platform in the escalation phase start calling for ROI on their investment in the channel.
- "Consolidation" — As soon as the channel determines how best to monetize, users will flock to the most viable model, this consolidation of users can be seen as users migrate from other copycat channels to the one with the most lucrative and fair model.
- "Maintain" — In the final phase of the life cycle, the adoption rate of new users, generally matches the attrition rate.
References
editMost recently, the New Media Life Cycle for Twitter has generated interest:
- NY Times article about Oprah on Twitter (includes quote from Andrew Davis of Tippingpoint Labs
- NY Observer Article About Twitter Backlash
- Washington Post article including reference to the New Media Life Cycle