The Shifting Economy - Local Web

In the old days (less than 10 years ago), we called the internet the "world wide web."

Today, the online world is impacting our local economy in more ways than we realize. One very specific example is the empty shell of a movie rental business across from the Wal-Mart Supercenter on Rogers Avenue.

Why go all the way to a store to rent a DVD when you can buy your very own copy for $20 across the street?

Or, better yet, order up a pay per view on your cable or dish account? Better still is Netflix or Movielink. Rent for about $4 or buy for $15 to $20, and never, ever leave your house. 

And then there's this news flash, straight from FORTUNE magazine, breaking word of a deal between Steve Jobs and Rupert Murdoch's behemoths.

"Several sources this morning - including the Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal
- are reporting that Apple (AAPL) and News Corp. (NWS) have struck a
deal for a new video-on-demand service that could change the way
digital movies are distributed, viewed and paid for."

It's incumbent on the people of the Greater Fort Smith Region to establish an online presence. This is where we'll continue to engage in more and more local commerce -- globally. This is where we'll engage in more and more global commerce -- locally.