Tuesday, 1. December 2009
"The distinction between cyberspace and that which isn't cyberspace is going to become unimaginable" - Creative Commons, cosoblues (2009) ©
Canvas8 Thought Leader and co-author of Communities Dominate Brands, Alan Moore, today released a fascinating report looking at “blended reality” and brands fundamental need to reinvent their communications to keep pace with change.
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We no longer live in a world of distinct on- and offline activities. Rather than create a strategy of siloed campaign elements, brands should look at a bigger picture in which virtual and real co-exist in one symbiotic ecosystem.
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Blended reality living
My son Josef wakes up in the morning, goes downstairs and turns on the television. He might watch Ceebeebies, or he might have a go on his Xbox 360. Then his mate Tom calls, as they are both playing the same MMORPG. Much to my frustration, Josef turns on the speakerphone and I can hear the conversation throughout the house. The doorbell goes. More of Josef’s mates arrive, they decide to play Call of Duty and – of course – there is group discussion around the multiplayer game. Then they decide to go and play a game of “it” in our back garden. I look out the window and see they are climbing up trees and all over the pergola – and diving through the laurel hedge. The little buggers! I had to cut the major branches off three trees last week because of their exploits. I run into the garden, shouting. They go off to the skate park. Later that day I call Josef on his mobile, asking him to come home; he moans and groans but eventually he arrives with cuts and bruises. He stacked it over the spine, apparently. He watches some Simpsons on TV and moves onto his computer to watch some YouTube clips. Before bedtime, being a tactile kind of guy, he gives me a big cuddle, which I always enjoy.
But why is this story relevant?
Because Josef’s world is not one defined by an artificial sense of separation between real and virtual. According to William Gibson, author, Sci-Fi writer and inventor of the word ‘cyberspace’, there is no online or offline – there is only blended reality.
My son Josef wakes up in the morning, goes downstairs and turns on the television. He might watch Ceebeebies, or he might have a go on his Xbox 360. Then his mate Tom calls, as they are both playing the same MMORPG. Much to my frustration, Josef turns on the speakerphone and I can hear the conversation throughout the house. The doorbell goes. More of Josef’s mates arrive, they decide to play Call of Duty and – of course – there is group discussion around the multiplayer game. Then they decide to go and play a game of “it” in our back garden. I look out the window and see they are climbing up trees and all over the pergola – and diving through the laurel hedge. The little buggers! I had to cut the major branches off three trees last week because of their exploits. I run into the garden, shouting. They go off to the skate park. Later that day I call Josef on his mobile, asking him to come home; he moans and groans but eventually he arrives with cuts and bruises. He stacked it over the spine, apparently. He watches some Simpsons on TV and moves onto his computer to watch some YouTube clips. Before bedtime, being a tactile kind of guy, he gives me a big cuddle, which I always enjoy.
But why is this story relevant?
Because Josef’s world is not one defined by an artificial sense of separation between real and virtual. According to William Gibson, author, Sci-Fi writer and inventor of the word ‘cyberspace’, there is no online or offline – there is only blended reality.
We no longer live in a world of distinct on- and offline activities. Rather than create a strategy of siloed campaign elements, brands should look at a bigger picture in which virtual and real co-exist in one symbiotic ecosystem.
Canvas8 subscribers can read the full report
here.
