GPC as business model

Robert Scoble gets chided on a regular basis but he often hits on important issues. Today Robert hit a growing issue on the head when he talked about Google Reader needing Granular Privacy Controls (GPC). The current hubris in the blogosphere about changes to Google reader that make shared feeds completely public rightly brings Scoble to the conclusion that Google needs to build granular privacy controls in the same way that Facebook offers to their users.

I want to take this discussion a step further. Scoble is on to something with GPC. I have been looking at the adoption of Web 2.0 technologies inside the enterprise for quite some time. There are some amazing tools out there that can add function to a company's technology tool portfolio. The video space is a prime example. YouTube, Viddler and Revver are examples of great video infrastructures that companies could leverage rather than build their own platforms. However, the biggest issue I come up against time and time again is security and confidentiality. There is a vast amount of information that organizations don't want to freely share on the Internet - The video of a CEO's comments to his management team for example.    

Many startups look to advertising as a source of revenue for their business. I urge them to think different. Granular Privacy Controls can be a powerful tool in monetizing their service. If you can provide privacy features that allow me to keep a company video private and embed it in a Wiki, such as Near-Time, or on my company intranet, then you have a service that companies will pay for. Price the service at an attractive level that would make a company look dumb for building the infrastructure in house. Make it easy to purchase and provide the tools to make it easy to securely embed your services in other sites. I have been experimenting with Zoho Creator and Viddler video feeds to embed private databases and videos in to sites that have a limited and controlled audience. I do not want these feeds out in the open. I don't believe I am alone in having this need.

So Robert, Thanks for opening the conversation. Granular Privacy Controls need to be given serious consideration by established service providers and new startups.