• by October 7, 2011

However, the growth of more effortless and widespread sharing has huge implications for the future of media. When people share content, they are signaling that they consider it worthwhile. This sets off a virtuous cycle of engagement as it's passed on to others, who in turn pass it on to others. Highly shared content is more valuable, and the media channels that make it easy to share that valuable content will prevail. Never before has the importance of sharing and its role in the online ecosystem been more evident. It's become the social norm to give our friends an ever more complete peek into our lives as we live them now, and as we shape them into the future.

From publishers, advertisers and consumers to social networking giants and tighter-knit networks that cater to every interest group under the sun, all participants in the online media ecosystem have one thing in common - the fuel they run on is sharing. And that simple click of a button provides value not only to the consumer or "sharer," but also to the publisher whose content is being shared and the advertisers clamoring for that consumer's attention. The utility to the consumer is clear: she has an easy way of building a connection with her social circle by sharing some kind of content. Advertisers benefit because the audience they're trying to reach has already indicated their affinities and interest through their sharing activity. Publishers enable each interested reader to build a larger audience and generate more traffic to their site.

This interconnected cycle happens everywhere on the Web and encompasses an audience greater than even the massive user base claimed by Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and the like. A renewed focus on the power of sharing gives credence to this simple, yet highly impactful, online action - the single most important action shaping the socialized Web.

Tim Schigel, ShareThis Founder and Chairman