Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Yahoo Time Capsule: Stunt or Scheme

Yahoo just announced that it is going to create a digital time capsule which will be re-opened in 2020. Users around the world can submit content which will be profiled, played on anchient ruins and beamed into space in 14 years. Click here for article

In my view there are only two ways to view this move. It's either a PR stunt or a money making scheme...or both. They're obviously getting lots of coverage for this new venture - if they weren't, the news wouldn't have made it to Google News where I picked it up. As for it being a money making scheme, Yahoo is placing advertisements on the pages that are used to upload content to the time capsule. With its existing broad consumer appeal and already succesful PR campaign Yahoo will undoubtedly deliver millions of impressions, generating lots of revenue. So, as far as I can tell, this new concept is both a stunt and a scheme. Here's the part that really bothers me - it's a relatively good one.

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