THE digital economy underpins our whole economy, it builds our national competitiveness. The creative and digital industries are in the midst of a revolution.

Change is nothing new, but the phenomenal, relentless rate of change is something we have never had to deal with before.

The mediascape has become increasingly fragmented and consumers are increasingly sophisticated. Today’s audiences watch TV programmes when they want, rarely fully concentrating on what is on, doing many other things online at the same time.

Mass captive audiences are a thing of the past and traditional advertising revenue models are shrinking with them. There is a massive amount of choice – if the consumer doesn’t like what they see, they go elsewhere. Broadcasters and brands are having to think of every possible way to capture attention.

Connected consumers expect to have conversations with brands, they trust peer networks above advertising rhetoric. In this new open two way environment, top- down advertising is becoming obsolete.

The gatekeepers of old are losing importance in this connected world, their power is diminished and their position in the supply chain is threatened. Small businesses can access their consumers directly.

Big companies, bureaucratic and slow, find it hard to react effectively to rapid technological and audience changes. Successful companies will be those that can evolve, act entrepreneurially, collaborate.

I think that small companies that accommodate collaboration are in a powerful position.

Alliances between small, fleet of foot companies can take risks, innovate and experiment with new business models without fear. Established corporations have too much to lose. Alliances are close enough the to coalface to pick up subtle market shifts and to adapt quickly.

The digital industries are made up of different sectors that exist within silos. The small companies find it difficult to find time to meet collaborators, and to meet the big players offering effective routes to market.

The b.TWEEN forum, and the innovation activity that surrounds it, provides a key way to strengthen the fragmented supply chain, but there need to be more spaces that catalyse collaboration, encouraging experimentation around new business models that grasp new opportunities.

Katz Kiely is director of b.TWEEN Interactive Digital Media Forum, which is meeting in Liverpool on June 11-12. For more information visit www.btween.co.uk