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28Oct07

Brightcove Test

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Cozying up to Joost, et al.

03Sep07

Jake Coyle of the Associated Press got readers’ attention today with his article on the future of web video, specifically regarding new web sites that aim to make watching web videos much like watching TV.

That means improving the quality of web videos to make unpixelated full-screen viewing a standard practice, as well as incorporating a TV-like interface that would more easily facilitate “channel surfing” between web videos.

Just check out this screen shot of a sample page from Joost, one of several sites aiming to bridge the web- and television-viewing experiences.

So how does this all work, you ask? Unlike YouTube-like video sharing sites, Joost (and other sites like it) would require users to download and install their application just like any other kind of software. When you launch the application, “It then fills your screen with an on-demand-style choice of videos arranged in near broadcast-quality channels,” writes Coyle.

Sounds easy (and interesting) enough.

But should we actually look at these new services as potential YouTube killers, or rather as YouTube alternatives? We won’t have to wait too long to find out: According to Coyle, Joost will open to the public “before the end of the year,” and similar websites have planned launches within a year from now.

In the end, all this makes me wonder: What ever happened to WebTV?

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Web video watchers dig news, diss long ads

03Sep07

What was the last online video you watched? If the results of a recent Advertising.com survey are any indication, you probably indulged in a clip or two of the latest news. (Perhaps a video version of the interrogation of a certain former Idaho senator?)

On top of that, you probably got hit with a video ad and thought to yourself, “It sure would be nice if this ad were shorter.”

If so, then you’re in very good company, at least according to the survey.

To make it brief: The survey showed that 62 percent of respondents went online to watch news video (as opposed to movie trailers, music videos, and amateur user-generated content). Perhaps not surprisingly, the survey found that 63 percent of respondents felt “shorter ads would make the experience more pleasurable.”

If only everything in life could be shorter and more pleasurable. Well, maybe not everything.

For some great analysis of the survey results and their implications on the web ad industry, check out this piece on the marketing news site, Clickz.

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NBC pulls out of iTunes

31Aug07

With its new fall lineup just around the corner, NBC has said it won’t renew its contract with Apple to sell shows on iTunes.

Sources told the New York Times that videos already being sold online won’t be pulled “for several months,” at least not until the contract runs up in December. That means fans of “Battlestar Galactica,” “The Office,” and “30 Rock” better act quickly and buy soon before NBC changes its mind.

The cause of the breakup, according to NYT, revolves around NBC’s desire to install stricter DRM measures on its content, as well as frustration over show pricing that NBC execs claim heavily favor Apple. (Hmmm, you think?)

This move hits Smaller Screen pretty hard. Having downloaded entire seasons of “The Office,” “30 Rock,” and “Heroes” from NBC’s iTunes store, and with so much interest in the network’s new fall shows, we just hope NBC gets this all sorted out quickly.

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Web venture named “Hulu”

29Aug07

What’s in a name? Don’t look to NBC Universal or News Corp. for answers. The two media conglomerates, who teamed up five months ago to launch what is basically a higher-end version of YouTube, unveiled the name of their web effort today, and it goes by the name of “Hulu.”

Will “Hulu” earn a spot on the list of Internet memes? We’ll have to wait and see: Hulu won’t launch its limited-membership test site until October.

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VBS.TV gets WSJ nod

28Aug07

The Wall Street Journal Online profiled the web video channel VBS.TV on Monday, highlighting the site’s edgy programming and “more serious criticism and investigative pieces.”

An online extension of Vice Magazine, VBS.TV offers up feature-style documentaries on political issues along with pieces on musicians, artists, and all-around curiosities. The WSJ.com story references one “offbeat” VBS.TV story that profiles “a tailor in Bogota who specializes in making bulletproof clothing items like suit jackets and ties.”

The site is faring very well in the quality of content it has to offer. It could use some help in the quantity department, but since I’ve been watching some pieces over and over again, what VBS lacks in numbers it gains in the strength of its fresh and provocative programming.

It also doesn’t hurt to have VBS programming run by directorial badass Spike Jonze (Adaptation, Being John Malkovich, music videos and commercials galore), or as I like to call him: America’s Michel Gondry.

His recent six-part interview with M.I.A., the quirky British/Sri Lankan MC who just released her highly anticipated second album, is a powerful addition to a growing lineup of engaging web television that young people will actually enjoy.

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Gang video smackdown

28Aug07

Forget copyright infringement. Now video sharing sites are taking heat from British lawmakers over violent clips posted by gangs to attract new recruits.

The idea, according to critics, is to crack down on video clips that glorify gang activity and depict violence. Plus, they claim these clips violate many sites’ terms of use, which ban explicit sexual and violent content.

Good luck with this one, MPs.

from The Daily Telegraph

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