The Inconvenient Demographics of the Web

So ad revenue on the Internet is, as far as I can tell, so rare it's nearly mythical in nature. Therefore, while newspapers and media companies look to move online and primarily publish there, the issue of profitability still looms large. One major reason sites won't get the traffic and therefore the money they desire is because there is little brand loyalty on the Internet - not when it comes to your standard hard news, at least. Sure, casual Webgoers are probably more apt to type in the URL of their hometown paper, but the money-making demographic has no such inclination. That demographic - which I lovingly refer to as "people on the Internet (as opposed to people who just use the Internet) - comprises the users who perpetuate and propel the entity that is the World Wide Web. This group is key because, while it isn't large, it is vocal and active, and it prioritizes receiving and sharing information quickly and is, as a result, taste-making and agenda-setting in the community at large.

Unfortunately for companies looking to profit off this group, it also consists of the individuals that pirate movies and music, lobby for net neutrality and believe information should be free. Like me, they probably have Adblock installed and thus won't even be aware when an ad is served up.