Here at bigmouth we have been enjoying the Fantasy Footy League, which gives us the opportunity to participate in such online activities in a fun and light-hearted manner. (http://www.fantasyfootyleague.com / )
Guardian Unlimited have dedicated a section of their website to the World Cup, providing statistics, commentaries and a personalised "World Cup show". The BBC offers users the opportunity to watch matches on broadband and provides full details of each participating team lucky enough to qualify and seek the admiration of the nation. The BBC also hosts blogs, providing individuals with the option to make comments about their predictions and favourite players. Understandably, the Times are also successfully competing for increased online traffic through such a popular worldwide event. The Times website features Baddiel and Skinner's World Cup podcast which is advertised heavily on the home page, enabling users to have instant access. Successful email advertising campaigns for subscribers have also been noted this year and undoubtedly such techniques will only develop before we get to South Africa in 2010.
To many such recent online escapades may seem like a bit of fun. In reality this is just the start of further online activities reshaping as internet usage continues to grow substantially. Many question whether or not the internet will take prominence over many other key media channels, such as the fourth estate. The Guardian have recently announced that their website will take prominence over the newspaper for breaking news. Therefore they won't hold stories for the following day's newspaper. Competitors plan to adopt a similar tactic.
It looks like the next phase of the internet is going to reveal another key change in the way that the media operate. Whatever the outcome is, let's sit back and enjoy the new opportunities this is bringing us as consumers in terms of entertainment and a mutually beneficial feeling of participation.
