April 04, 2006
Reuters Photo: Bertelsmann Chief Executive Gunter Thielen is seen in Berlin March 22, 2006.
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Bertelsmann, the German media company has plans to return to the Internet with the goal of turning its Direct Group of book, CD and DVD clubs into an Internet community for the more mature customer.
With the strategy of building an Internet community, the company thinks that they can turn things around.
Chief Executive Gunter Thielen told Reuters in a recent interview "People are getting older ... and older people are getting lonelier and they will need communities where they can share their interests."
With demographics showing the growing aging population along with fewer children and more disposable income, they think they've got a winner.
There have been other regular media companies starting to get there feet wet with the Internet again as Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. bought the teenage Internet community MySpace.com, which as approximately 60 million members.
I think that it will be quite a challenge and it can't be approached like it has been with younger users. This crowd is just getting familiar and comforable with the Intenet. They will not be able to be marketed with the "growing-at-the-speed-of-light mantra.
For Bertelsmann the major challenge will be coming up with something compelling and in my view, more of a niche than just being someone that is older.
But if it can be pulled off, it could be a great draw for advertisers because of the tremendous income that this particular group of people represent. If they do make a success of it, you can be sure that their will be a avalanche of companies following right behind them.
