Playing the fame game

At last, trading in something even more worthless than dot-com stocks...

Remember the dot-com boom? It was characterised by sky-high valuations for companies that were almost entirely worthless? Well, now the web has gone one better - a stock market trading in the vagaries of fame. Called Celebdaq, it has been run on the web for some time, but now it's set to come to a television near you courtesy of the BBC. Celebdaq is a celebrity stock exchange where you buy and sell fame like any other variable commodity, based on media coverage. If you think Liam Gallagher is set for a bit of headline grabbing action then buy him low and sell high the next day. It's fun, but also dangerously addictive (a phrase Liam may have heard once or twice) so get involved: http://www.bbc.co.uk/celebdaq . The format is nothing new - think Fantasy Football - but Celebdaq's entrance into the mainstream proves that the web is still very much a driving force of creativity and innovation in the popular mainstream of the media world, allaying any fears that the internet died some time in mid 2001. It is also an important test-bed for interactive services - a fact not lost on even the largest media companies. To this end Celebdaq reminds us that mature media companies, such as broadcasters and magazine and newspaper publishers, are reliant upon the web, increasingly taking their inspiration from its darkest recesses - and often controversially claiming it as their own. If the events of the past week have taught us anything it's that tiny ripples in the web can cause major waves in the real world of 'grown up' media. By the way, David Beckham is now trading up £1.22 at £11.53. Perhaps more importantly (yes, more important that Beckham), the BBC is picking up the baton in the race to get interactive television into the nation's living rooms. With Celebdaq - however unquestionably lightweight it is (and it is) - Auntie believes she has found something which will capture people's imaginations and get them pressing their red buttons. By using something with a proven track-record of successful audience interaction on the web the BBC is paving the way for weightier interactive television applications.