With Genwi, users can browse media of all types from the home page; create a personal page that will display the media feeds of their choice as well as friends’ shared content every time they log in; and recommend content to their friends list as well as the entire Genwi community. The items that are viewed or shared most frequently rise to the top of the list on the Genwi home page and the site’s search results, instantly guiding users to the most popular and provocative material. Users also have the ability to consolidate syndicated online content across all media, tailor content packages to each user, extend MySpace-style user interaction to media sharing, and rank entries by user interest. In addition, bloggers and other online syndicated media providers can use the Genwi site to promote their own content by creating profiles that can be discovered by individual Genwi users through searches, friends’ recommendations and popularity-based home page visibility. The site’s combination of RSS feeds, all-media support, social bookmarking, social networking and social news provides an outlet for consumers through Web 2.0 channels. From the Genwi home page, users can browse content by media type, perform keyword searches that retrieve relevant items across all media formats, peruse the newest feeds added to the site, or click on a series of tabs to instantly identify the newest, most-viewed, and most-shared posts. This permits content discovery by serendipity as well as focused searching, while also allowing users to tune into the buzz of the day. From their personal pages, users can view the latest posts from the media feeds they have selected plus the last 10 days’ worth of content shared by the community members on their friends’ lists. Personal feeds are chosen from a menu or by directly inputting the URL on one’s account page. Users also have the option to add a description and/or content tags to facilitate Genwi searches by other members. The use of Genwi also eliminates copyright infringement problems because the site does not aggregate the content itself but only the metadata from RSS feeds. Media owners continue to control their own content as well as the user experience, and to monetize that content through paid ads embedded in the content, feed, or owner’s website. Membership is free. (www.genwi.com) |
