Unintended consequences
As this controversy brews, one of the key questions being asked is whether our entrenchment in the current measurement methodologies will stifle the development of easier-to-use web pages and applications. After all, if a single AJAX page view takes the place of 10 static page views, it's a huge concern for web publishers. That one AJAX page view will currently be counted once, while leaving things static will promote higher numbers within syndicated research. Is it any wonder, then, why some web publishers might steer clear of AJAX and other such technologies, since widespread use might damage comparative measures of traffic?
In many cases, traffic numbers have taken years to build. Why damage them now, even if dynamic technologies might provide a better user experience? The stakeholder who stands to lose here is the end user, and since end users are the anchor for the whole value chain, failing to serve their interests does a great disservice to the industry.
To their credit, many online publishers have moved forward with technologies like AJAX and Flash, putting the user experience first (and web measurement be damned). Yahoo!, for instance, has embraced AJAX, relying on the technology within its Yahoo Mail service and others. It also hosts a number of resources within its developer guides that encourage the use of AJAX for things like displaying maps. While it's refreshing to see a publisher put users first, it makes one wonder what the overall effect will be on Yahoo's measurable traffic and overall ad revenue. It also begs the question of whether a few large publishers can force a change in how we measure traffic online.
As publishers graduate to dynamic updating of information, the page view loses more and more of its meaning. Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing largely hinges on how long advertisers and agencies will continue to rank advertising opportunities by the number of page views a site is able to garner.
