Consumer — an individual who consumes something made by someone else, usually with some kind of direct and clear payment. The most common name used by companies to refer to individuals.
User — an individual who uses something made by someone else, usually with some kind of payment, although not frequently direct or clear. The most common name used by web and mobile companies to refer to individuals.
I’d like to propose a new word for the new media lexicon: Owners. Companies are very clear on who their “owners” are, and they go to work to pursue their interests every day. When it comes to our data and time, we should start thinking of ourselves as a little enterprise organized for the express benefit of ourselves. We have tools never before imaginable to build a far more favorable model for ourselves.
But what do we, as enterprises, do?
What product do we make? What service do we provide?
What marketplace are we in? What forms of payment do we accept?
How do we calculate our bottom line?
In the multi-hundred billion dollar industries funded by advertising, the first answer is quite simple: we make data. Data has become a new form of currency in the connected world (joining money and time), and we, as individuals, have an unfair advantage in creating, aggregating and owning the best data about ourselves as Owners.
We also provide the critical service of our time and attention and deciding to whom to give this finite resource. Our marketplace is one where we allow others we trust, companies or individuals, to find us or know us better through our data and to eliminate huge inefficiencies and costs in our lives — and theirs. This marketplace applies to any industry that uses data today — advertising, media, entertainment, retail, health, travel, etc. As payment, we accept cash, discounts, special personalized offers, time savings, mind blowing relevance and discovery, improved safety and security, and guarantees of privacy.
Our bottom line is the most interesting of all to consider. Given the many forms of payment, each of us can choose which of these benefits to emphasize. And unlike most businesses, we can decide on a case by case basis which is most important. Sometimes I might like to maximize my economic benefits (like most traditional companies), but at others, mind blowing relevance and discovery may be most important (such as my upcoming vacation with my family). In a rush, convenience and time savings are probably most important. None of the forms of payment are mutually exclusive, but trade offs will need to be made for the good of our enterprise — just as any great manager has to do.
I hope you will consider using Owner when referring to yourself in the context of using services that require your data or time. Names matter.
S.
Shane Green 
One thought on “Owners, not Consumers or Users”