Daily Marauder

News Corp.’s MySpace is launching a partnership with leading modeling agency Ford Models to provide an online destination for the Ford Models Supermodel of the World model search. Prospective models will be able to apply and interact with the agency via MySpace profile. (http://www.webpronews.com/insiderreports/2007/06/13/models-find-a-runway-on-myspace 6/13)

Time Warner’s CNN and Google’s YouTube will co-sponsor upcoming Democratic and Republican presidential debates, enabling people to submit questions to candidates via videos sent through the YouTube community. CNN anchor Anderson Cooper will act as the moderator.  (http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN1340275120070613 6/13)

NBCU Digital Studios unveiled On Dating, an online video series with an interactive dating component. “Virtual dating coach” Andrea Syrtash hosts 3-8 minute webisodes giving users advice on how to write the perfect profile, how to interact through the web and how to spot the psychos. Episodes can be subscribed to via RSS feed, AppleTV or iPod and embedded for free on other sites. OnDating is just one of the original shows available on NBC’s self-help themed On Networks hub.

 
 Worldwide sales of Internet protocol television (IPTV) set-top boxes will soar to 7.9 million units in 2007, a year-over-year growth rate of 111 percent, according to a new report by Strategy Analytics. The Asia-Pacific region will account for a bulk of the growth, amounting to 45% of the installed base, followed by Europe with 33% and the U.S. with 13%. Worldwide DVRs installations are expected to almost double from 15% penetration in 2006 to 29% by the end of this year. 

Sprint wants to build a WiMAX network to offer high-speed, wireless Internet access to 100 million people, and to that end the company is reportedly mulling its financial options. One idea that is being floated, according to people close to the matter, is the spinoff of Sprint’s WiMAX unit as part of a joint deal with Craig McCaw’s Clearwire Corp. Another option is seeking investment money from the four cable companies who are already in a joint venture with Sprint to deliver the Pivot wireless service.  (The Wall Street Journal  6/14)  

ComScore began measuring the reach of widget providers, which create applications that can be used to produce and play embeddable videos, photo slideshows and music playlists. The system is an important first step in helping advertisers determine the reach of these small apps, which could carry their ads and spread them virally across the net on social networking pages, blogs and other sites. So far MySpace and Facebook, the top two social networking sites, don’t allow third-party ads on their sites. But many see widget-based advertising as the sites’ best chance to monetize their huge user bases.      

Worldwide Widget Distribution, April 2007:
 
Widget (love the names)          Unique Visitors (in millions) % of worldwide online audience
Slide                                         117.1                                       13.8%
RockYou                                   82.0                                         9.7
PictureTrail                               30.6                                         3.6
Photobucket                             28.2                                         3.3
Bunnyhero labs                        25.0                                         3.0
BlingyBlob                                21.6                                         2.5    
POQbum                                   18.7                                         2.2
Brightcove                                16.9                                         2.0
Layoutstar                                15.3                                         1.8
Musicplaylist.us                        15.1                                         1.8
Source: comScore Widget Metrix, via Wall Street Journal 

YouTube created a iGoogle Gadget that enables users to search for and watch YouTube videos directly from their customizable iGoogle home page. Search by most viewed, highest rated, recently added or most discussed. 

Google has created placement performance reports for its AdWords service, giving advertisers detailed performance metrics on how their ads performed on specific sites. The advance should do wonders for accountability. Until now contextual advertisers have been unable to see which sites are generating the most click-throughs.  

EBay is pulling all of its advertising from Google’s U.S. network in what is widely seen as punishment for trying to crash eBay’s user conference in Boston this week. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Derek Brown says: “The two companies have been on a collision course for a long time.” (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2007/06/14/BUG9LQER0T1.DTL 6/14) 

Peer-to-peer video distributor Veoh Networks announced its user base grew to 12.5 million in May, a 19% increase over April and a 184% bump since officially launching in February. Veoh’s owners include Time Warner and Michael Eisner’s Tornante Company.  

Veoh’s Online Site 

Veoh Player (Must be downloaded to computer to use)

This is my first time using the Veoh player and I must say, my experience was pretty disappointing.  I couldn’t figure out how to add a video for the longest time.  Once I finally figured it out, it took me 9 minutes to download a 2 minute clip over a broadband connection.  Got time?  Use the Veoh player.

Sony Pictures Television and video sharing site Grouper launched a new user-generated companion feature inspired by FX hit Rescue Me. Real-life fire fighters are encouraged to submit videos of what it is really like working in a firehouse. Each episode (“first fire,” “camaraderie”) is kicked off with a clip from the show.

NBC News will debut its iCue Web site to broadcast analysts today. The new Web site is designed to act as a supplement to Advanced Placement high school courses, and it will use film and video from NBC’s archives to chronicle events in history. The New York Times (6/14) 

Chime.tv is a new video site that features a range of channels, user-friendly creation tools and a powerful search function to help wade through the thousands of videos added to the web each day. Click on the video player to expand and contract the image. Click on the logo in the top right hand corner to be taken to the source site. Search for content from a number of popular sites including YouTube, Veoh, Metacafe, Google Video and DailyMotion. Scroll down on the left of the player to the “Web Shows” category for a selection of the best web originals, from Sanctuary to Goodnight Burbank.

I like the idea of providing users with channels based on niche interests in an attempt to mimic a channel surfing type of environment.  That said, until sites like this one combine both professionally-produced content with user-gen content, I don’t think they will be successful.  As a user, I want all content in one place available in a way that I can search specifically for what I want or channel surf.  I also want to be able to filter professionally produced vs. user-gen based on what I’m looking for.  Like Google says, users want to come to a place where they can search and find what they’re looking for as the top search result every single time.  In the video case as compared with the text case, video search could be either a specific search OR channel surfing within a particular niche.

Users willing to sign up to test the beta version of Microsoft’s Windows Home Server can download a trial release candidate version of the software. Windows Home Server is designed to enable users to link digital devices, including PCs and gaming consoles, within the home. (Yahoo!/TechWeb/InformationWeek 6/13)