It is because the internet is transparent, affordable and open to the masses, 1.4 billion of us, that its impact has been so profound. I Imagine profound levels of change for Creators when Internet based systems for this group empower and unify their collective mass to benefit from shared basic needs. In our world those shared basic needs are the ability to "be heard" and make a living.The day is fast approaching when the universe of hits market creators and participants of digital content like songs, sound recordings, photos, and videos, will unite with their hobbyist and aspiring professional brethren. The combined numbers are staggering.
I researched the professional associations like the AFofM, AFTRA, BMI, ASCAP, SESAC, SAG, Screenwriters Guild and other associations of professionals in the digital content creation business. By comparing the ratio of models and actors to screenwriters and director as well as the ratio of musicians to bands and writers to songs in professional market, I have developed a projection of the number of Creators in the total market. By comparing these ratios to creator indicators in the digital content market like the number of bands on MySpace and Facebook, and photographers on Flickr, and video producers on YouTube and additionally the numbers of models and actors in photos and videos, I come up with an astounding 578 million participants. And I have many reasons to believe this maybe low. Two of those reasons are I haven't included counts for software developers and graphic artists.
My research wasn't intended to created a firm foundation of statistical data, it is an estimate. However, there are 6 billion of us on the planet and we all have right and left hemispheres in our brains. It stands to reason that at least 8% of us are using our right hemispheres to create things that could become digital content even if it is created out of pleasure activities.
If there are 578M potential digital content creators, how many of these people have the potential to disseminate works they create. Since the Internet is the vehicle enabling the global distribution of digital content we could limit our scope to those people on the net. The internet penetration reached 21.9% of the global population on June 30, 2008 according to internetworldstats.com. Maybe it stands to reason that I should reduce the total available market (TAM) of the 578M to the 21.9 percent who are on the net and get a Served Available Market (SAM) of 126M people who are creating and on the internet. I personally think this number is again conservative considering the fact that the ratios used to estimate the TAM were based on internet content excluding important sectors, and not including both digital and non-digital forms of the content types mentioned.
Regardless of how you wish to look at it, the number is HUGE. When a small portion of a HUGE population unite to create change, surprising things happen. MyWerx is creating various types of "value" for this HUGE group so they and the people who believe in them, and work with them can unite. Together we can create new systems for conducting business that are fair, transparent, and affordable to everyone. In that kind of market, talent, work ethic, and opportunity create a recipe for success on a much grander scale. Get involved. Every creator and every work counts. In the internet age, every voice has an opportunity to be heard. Do something about it!!
(The photo above was made available by Creative Commons permission ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeffwerner/45939339/ )
