Three Quarters of UK Digital Sector Believes Publishers Should Take More Responsibility for Monetised Content, Reveals Survey

UK publishers and site owners should take far greater responsibility for the content that their users publish if that content is being monetised, according to a nationwide survey of the digital media sector, commissioned by Reality Digital - a leading enterprise-scale social media platform provider that enables companies to build, manage and commercialise brand-safe, digital media communities.

Almost three quarters (73%) of the survey's respondents, which spanned agencies and brand advertisers, along with publishers themselves, indicated that publishers aren't doing enough to ensure that content is being used responsibly, particularly when it is being utilised in a commercial context. With a further 15% of respondents suggesting that publishers ‘only sometimes' take sufficient responsibility, just 12% of respondents actually believe that publishers are currently acting responsibly enough, in terms of the level of publisher moderation being adopted against user generated content (UGC).

The survey marks the official launch of the OpenView Venture Partners-backed Reality Digital's European offices, based in London and headed by Robert Proctor, to offer publishers the social media development, management and monetisation technologies that are currently used by ITV Local for Grassroots Sport, Snap Britain and Your News, BBC Worldwide's Lonely Planet and Channel 4's 4mations, amongst others in the US.

Robert Proctor, head of EMEA for Reality Digital, commented: "This survey indicates a growing feeling within the industry that publishers simply aren't acting responsibly enough in terms of ensuring that their sites are fit for purpose for their advertising partners. The fact that many within the industry regard unmoderated user generated content - and particularly user generated video - as an unsafe medium for brand advertising indicates that brands no longer want to engage with consumers in the chaotic, unreliable world of unmoderated social media.

"It's highly likely that the backlash we're now starting to see will result in an entirely new industry standard for monetising user generated video content that will work for both consumers and the publishing/advertising communities alike, offering the best of both worlds through a little compromise on both sides. Some publishers are already sensing this change and are acting upon it, looking towards developing a middle ground which enables the user to retain a sense of freedom yet which delivers the brand and its advertisers the security of a moderated environment.

"With brands offering consumer-led functionality - such as the creation of video, for example, which can be saved, shared and embedded off-site to encourage viral distribution and thereby deliver brand extension - consumers will be enticed into these new brand-led media environments and feel less ‘sold to' than on a traditional brand-property site. Ultimately the new brand-led social media network environment which is evolving will be aligned to the free-for-all world of the social network but with well defined, controlled commercial parameters assuring safety for advertising partners."

Several of the world's top broadcasters, publishers and brands already trust Reality Digital to develop and manage their social media communities. Both Adobe and Microsoft currently partner with Reality Digital to leverage the team's deep social media expertise.         

For more information, visit www.realitydigital.com.