German tabloid Bild has effectively created 21,000 new reporters by developing an inexpensive camera that automatically feeds all images captured to the paper’s website.
The idea was born after the editor of the magazine, Kai Dieckmann, was shown a Flip video camera. The flip video camera is compact and designed to make uploading videos to the Internet very easy. The editor was inspired by the camera and began developing a model that is quite similar yet less expensive for consumers.
The big difference between the Flip and the Bild camera is that all videos captured with the Bild camera have to be opened on the Bild website. This gives the tabloid first choice of all images its users capture for use in the magazine. Bild pays for the videos or images they use and encourage the users to film as much as they can.
Bild launched the new program which had a remarkable response. With more than 21,000 people contributing user-generated content (UGC) everyday, the paper has an edge over traditional papers that rely on staff that are limited by budgets and mobility.
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