Personal Life Media

One of the better things about getting older and wiser is everybody else I know has gotten older, too. Some have even gotten wiser.

Tim Bratton is someone who's been wise for a long time. He was instrumental in the development of my professional career. He and his wife Susan Bratton are a true Silicon Valley power couple - true entrepreneurs. I've known them for at least 10 years(!) and they are always looking for new business ideas.

Yesterday they launched their latest venture: Personal Life Media.

It's a sort of combination of Podcasting, motivational presentations, and lifestyle content. In their words:

Personal Life Media is the first network created for the so-called “cultural creatives” market segment: those who share common attitudes that value life-long learning, self-actualization, authenticity, idealism, activism, a global perspective, ecology, the importance of women, altruism and spirituality.

...The new network provides socially-conscious lifestyle content on issues central to our lives: relationships, dating, marriage, intimacy, life purpose, wealth creation, healthy aging and longevity. Additional areas of interest including life coaching, ecology, sustainable living, new music, beauty innovation and cosmetic surgery, passion at work and play, ethical sales and business practices, spirituality, personal and global transformation. Tantra, Kama Sutra and expanded lovemaking are also featured in the debut programming.
Nineteen show hosts produce fifteen weekly audio shows distributed online for download or streaming and in iTunes, on iPods and MP3 players.

They plan to include advertising for revenue generation. I think there are some other opportunities here, too - some people will be willing to pay for quality subscription content, and I am willing to bet that some content providers would be willing to serialize their existing content or create new content as infomercials or "advertising" for DVDs and books.

While the content isn't my personal cup of tea, I think the business makes sense - when people want to change their lives, regular, daily reinforcement is key. I think the Brattons also have a good feel for their target market, and this is reflected in their choice of material.

The idea of replacing cassettes with Podcasts is an obvious one. Personal Life Media has figured out where the money in those replaced cassettes really is, and suggests a path where users can ultimately get customized, personalized content in the future.

The site still has a few rough edges (I always find stock photography somewhat painful; the "your show here" seems a bit out of place; it's too hard to find the latest downloads), but for a small-company launch, this looks promising.

Congratulations, Tim and Susan!