In a fragmented media landscape the focus is often on creating the best content. But we dismiss the power of context at our peril, argues one media strategist, as he examines why delivering the message still matters most.

In my house I have a telephone. This in itself is nothing exceptional. However, I have recently discovered that this telephone has a 'feature' that is probably the most pointless, ludicrous, spectacular waste of development in the history of telephones.

The phone rings and if I'm not in it goes to answerphone. The other day I happened to be doing something and only reached the phone towards the end of someone leaving a message. The person leaving the message concluded their request for me to call back and then something very odd happened. Upon them hanging up, the answerphone said, 'Thanks for calling!' For whose benefit is this pearl of automated wisdom, because the person who they graciously thanked had already hung up and one would assume that as a general rule the person for whom the message was left is not in. Therefore someone has spent time, effort and money developing a piece of electronic wizardry for no one's benefit, that no one will ever hear. This was some poor developer's time that would have been better spent counting the hairs on the back of his hands. Poor bloke.

But my telephone isn't alone in its pointlessness. Yes, my in-laws have one that does the same, but expanding outside of domestic phones, it strikes me that we are at a point in time where media is fragmenting and everyone is trying to do the 'digital' thing, however, a large proportion of digital content, sites and platforms are 'Thanks for calling!'. I look around at online video content, in particular from some of the biggest companies, and think 'So what?'. It's the wrong stuff in the wrong place at the wrong time for the wrong people.

You see, the problem is that there is a fantastic opportunity out there in the digital world, right now, today, but most people are thinking content and not context.

We've all been to laboured media conferences where you fight to stay in your seat when every molecule within you wants to get up and do to the on stage 'expert' telling us for the nineteenth time this week that 'content is king' what John Belushi did to the serenading frat boy on the stairs in Animal House. Or is that just my fantasy??

Because, if we must have rent-a-clichés, then "context is king". Let me explain what I mean. Don't smash an acoustic guitar over my head just yet!

If you're a terrestrial or major satellite broadcaster then, yes, paying untold amounts of cash for key sporting events or major U.S. dramas is money well spent. Your audience is there, wants it, expects it and will consume it, coming back every week. Most importantly, the content technically works on a 32-inch TV screen. Now think of any of those things on mobile. None of them are important. No one cares, no one is going to watch a Euro Cup 2008 game on his or her phone because, not only are England out, but the screen's too small to see the ball. Nor would you watch 24 or Lost on your phone because people watch short clips they've downloaded or are streaming while on a bus or waiting for a bus. Or they're 15-year-old cap wearers playing Fiddy Pence through a tinny speaker.

Online is from my perspective a much greater opportunity for those seeking to create digital properties -- the screen's bigger, the pipe to feed you the content is bigger and ever growing and the interface more user-friendly and flexible. In time, online will replace some people's every day video-viewing, but right now we're simply hampered by broadband speeds, media owners freeing up digital rights and consumers becoming more used to consuming this way.

So whilst we wait, it is vitally important for those creating digital content and properties online to remember 'context'. Today, mainstream online video (i.e., the stuff from the terrestrials and major satellite broadcasters) is consumed by people sitting at their office desk eating their lunch. Catch-up. Alternatively, a huge amount of online video is consumed by demand-driven audiences who are seeking out mass-niche subject matters that they are passionate about. They desperately want to find out information about wine, food, parenting, gardening, or they want to enjoy video content in more niche areas that they love but can't find on mainstream TV (at least not in depth) such as cycling, comedy, scuba diving, travel…

And it is the latter that is the area for most creativity at present. Yes, I'm certain there are some people engaged enough with a big TV series that would like to try the interactive online game or see a bit more content, once. But why would they come back? For now, telly is telly and digital is digital. There are hundreds of topics that people care passionately about or are highly engaged with that are woefully underserved in video terms and consuming them on a PC (or Mac!!) is perfectly suited.

As we've said, in time broadband will be sufficiently fast and widespread that video can be delivered reliably to a converged digital box so that one can watch terrestrial TV or flick across to the web to stream or download quickly a full screen show or feature film on a 32- inch LCD TV at an even better quality than is currently possible from conventional broadcast methods. In fact, current HD TV channels are about as far removed from the source material than its possible to get. A HD broadcaster spits out the programme through their transmission suite, down a facility line, through a multiplex compressing to a few mbit/sec that they broadcast at, up to the satellite, back down to your minidish/cable provider, into your set-top box as a composite feed and into your TV through a £5 scart lead. All of that technical babble means it ends up being pretty rubbish. Video encoded at HD and downloaded in HD to your PC will, once speed is quick enough, be a true HD experience.

But all of this aside, the key to digital success will come through marketing. One advantage that the major broadcasters have is that you've got a one in five chance of finding the channel. You have slightly longer odds of finding a new website I put up today! So a strategic syndication model and cross platform promotion has to be the key to driving traffic back to your mothership website. This isn't smoke and mirrors, in fact it's not only common sense but also increases ad revenue by increasing your content's reach.

So what are we learning as we evolve content, projects and business models in the digital space? Well convergence isn't just about technology anymore. Companies are having to multi-skill to be successful. Production and distribution are inseparable -- understand where your content's going to end up before you even start writing. Distribution is now not only a means of generating revenue for content but also a form of marketing for your owner-operated sites.

It works, for now, and next week we'll move the wheel again to ensure that whatever digital messages we leave for people will be heard.

Thanks for calling!

Richard Jukes is managing director, Ground Up Media.