Filed under: Feature | Tags: 2008, Charlie Todd, Frozen, Grand Central, Improv Everywhere, January, Madison Square Garden, New York City, Online Video of the Week, U2, Upright Citizen's Brigade
ONLINE VIDEO OF THE WEEK: FROZEN GRAND CENTRAL
Improv Everywhere was created in August of 2001 by Charlie Todd, a comedian at the Upright Citizen’s Brigade in NYC. The above video represents IE’s latest attempt to cause “scenes of chaos and joy in public places,” an attempt they so successfully executed in this mission. Over 200 people gathered in Grand Central late in January to freeze in place at the exact same moment for five minutes. As you can imagine, those not down with the prank were fairly confused. After 5 minutes, the actors unfroze and went about their business as the gathered crowd clapped in amusement.
Improv Everywhere, based in NYC, has executed over 70 missions involving thousands of undercover agents. As a believer in getting funky, I definitely dig these guys.
As a close second favorite to the video above, Improv Everywhere executed a fake U2 concert on the roof of a building across the street from Madison Square Garden in NYC while U2 fans cheered and screamed from the street below. If only The Edge was Hispanic. . .
Over the next couple of weeks, in a group of my closest friends and co-workers, I plan to execute my own attempt at scenes of chaos and joy. I expect, in the end, we’ll probably end up skewing hard on the joy part and not so much on the chaos. Many thanks to Jedi for sending me this video. My Friday was drastically improved after viewing.
Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE
News Corp. exec Peter Chernin is reportedly telling Hollywood pals that “the strike is over.” Also: Informal talks between Hollywood’s striking writers and the major studios are said to have eliminated the major roadblocks to a new contract, which could lead to a tentative deal within days. (http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.com/chernin-tells-super-bowl-pals-strike-is-over 2/3, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/02/business/media/02cnd-writers.html 2/2)
CNN’s coverage of the debate Thursday night between Democratic presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton clocked 8.3 million viewers — the highest-rated primary debate in cable television history. The debate drew 1.2 million viewers in the age 18 to 34 demo. (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/01/AR2008020103050.html 2/2)
Way to mobilize the youth of the country. I am inspired by the interest of the younger demo in the government of our country. Whatever your political background, I hope you can agree that progress is getting people to start caring. With 1.2 million viewers in a demo that usually remains indifferent, it appears people are finally caring and talking. Originally shown at an Obama rally at UCLA, the video below is a visual reminder of the mobilization of the young. No matter who you’re voting for, I hope this is something you can get behind.
The struggling CW could be a canary in the coal mine for the broadcast television industry. Declining viewership and increased competition from video games, cable TV and the Internet are affecting ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox. But they are hitting the youth-focused CW harder. (http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-cw4feb04,1,600010.story?ctrack=5&cset=true 2/4)
A new attempt by USA Network to keep viewers interested through commercial breaks has surpassed expectations, according to this article. The channel learned last week that its Jan. 11 showing of “Psych,” which contained short, branded cartoon vignettes, earned the show its highest index report from Nielsen Media Research’s C3 ratings. (Mediaweek 2/4)
A new market survey conducted by Nielsen Media Research found that 56% of 18- to 34-year-old adults use digital video recorders, the Internet, video on demand and MP3 players to keep up with TV series. The survey also found that 22% of homes use DVR technology, marking an increase of 2 percentage points from 2006. (Los Angeles Times 2/4)
Cablevision today launched its Popcorn DVDs on Demand program, which allows subscribers to order movies on VOD the same day they are available on DVD. The next major release for the service, in which subscribers are also buying the DVD, which is mailed to them later, will be Denzel Washington’s “American Gangster” on Feb. 19. (Mediaweek 2/4)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
News Corp. says it is not preparing a rival bid for Yahoo, and other frequently named prospective suitors like Time Warner, AT&T and Comcast have not begun work on offers, according to people close to the companies. Microsoft “could easily top” their offers in a bidding war. (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/04/technology/04yahoo.html 2/4)
Microsoft’s proposed takeover of Yahoo “raises troubling questions” for Web users, says Google in a blog post. The deal would let Microsoft attempt to exert “inappropriate influence over the Internet.” Also: Google is offering Yahoo “help in any effort” to thwart Microsoft’s bid. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=avp8T_wFR.M0 2/3, http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB120206856800138831.html 2/4)
Google’s stock got hit with a double whammy on Friday as news of the Microsoft offer for Yahoo combined with a disappointing Q4 earnings announcement. The company reported that profit rose 17% during the quarter, following a 46% jump in profit during Q3, as growth of click throughs on Google search ads slowed. However, Google did release a new open standards-based Social Graph API on Friday to help social application developers track social connections made through the web. The API will make it easier to cross-reference users who are maintaining a presence and striking friendships across multiple social sites.
Introduction to the Social Graph API
Microsoft’s bid for Yahoo may give new Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes his first big test. The potential suitors for Time Warner’s once-dominant AOL appear to be dwindling, with Microsoft and Yahoo possibly out of the way. The remaining likely suitors: Google, AT&T, Comcast and News Corp. (http://money.cnn.com/2008/02/01/technology/siklos_yahoodeal.fortune/index.htm 2/1)
When Microsoft and NBC formed MSNBC.com, Microsoft agreed that the venture would be the only source of news on Microsoft sites. Microsoft could keep Yahoo News and sell MSNBC.com. However, insiders say that a sale is unlikely since MSNBC.com makes more money. (http://valleywag.com/351855/yahoo-deal-spells-a-sale-for-msnbccom 2/1, http://valleywag.com/351909/insiders-say-no-way-on-msnbccom-sale 2/2)
Looking for a replay of your favorite Superbowl commercials? Hulu beta subscribers can check them out at http://www.hulu.com/superbowl . Hulu’s blog will also embed several. MySpace has got them as well. For a look at Kina Grannis’s full length music video – winner of the Doritos/MySpace Superbowl Contest, click here.
While the number 1 commercial on AOL Sports at the moment is Budweiser’s “Rocky,” I’m going to have to go with #2 on the list as my favorite: Bridgestone’s “Squirrel.” There’s just something about a screaming animal. . . Speaking of which, anyone find it a bit odd that the top three ads are all digitized animal ads? CBS News refers to this as the critter theme. I prefer animal invasion; sounds a bit more Mars Attacks.
Bridgestone’s “Squirrel” Commercial
As questions swirl about its future, AOL, part of Time Warner, has bought a small widget and online desktop apps maker Goowy Media, for an undisclosed amount. Goowy was founded in 2004 and based in San Diego. In 2006, Goowy received an undisclosed amount of funding from Mark Cuban. (http://www.paidcontent.org/entry/419-aol-acquires-online-desktop-widgets-firm-goowy-media 2/3, http://www.news.com/8301-13577_3-9863956-36.html 2/4)
ESPN will allow Web users on college campuses and military bases — anyone in the .edu or .mil domain — to access live programming on its pay video site, ESPN360.com, without charge. Opening ESPN360′s doors is expected to more than double the site’s base of possible users. (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/04/business/media/04espn.html 2/4)
Yahoo! is in a deal with RealNetworks Rhapsody America, under which Yahoo! will transfer all users of its Yahoo! Music Unlimited subscription service to Rhapsody, whose on-demand service will be marketed by Yahoo! on its Web site. The two parties also reportedly plan to collaborate on other digital music initiatives. (Forbes 2/4)
A couple of weeks ago we reported several rumors of acquisition of Israel-based FoxyTunes a Firefox plugin that allows users to control their favorite media players from the browser. According to several sources the acquisition has been completed for an undisclosed amount of money. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/04/yahoo-acquires-israeli-foxytunes 2/4)
ABC News Now will offer live video coverage of the Super Tuesday primaries and caucuses hosted by Sam Donaldson and Laura Marquez on ABCNews.com beginning tomorrow night at 7 pm ET. Users will be able to “Talk Back” to ABC News NOW by submitting their video questions and comments, which will be integrated into the coverage throughout the evening.
NY-based Outside.in launched a new community site allowing local residents to meet their neighbors and track online discussions using an interactive map. The discussion boards make use of the site’s location-based organizational system to enable users to associate discussions with any location, public space or venue in their neighborhood. The site recently closed a $1.5 Million second round of funding, to be used to develop the additional community features, expand outreach to traditional media partners and launch a geo-targeted advertising platform.
Not nearly as fun and easy to use as Socialight but being a fan of location-based sites, I’ll give it a partial dig.
Application developer community Widgetbox raised $8 million in second round financing from Sequoia Capital, Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, NCD Investors, and private investor Michael Dearing. The new funding will be used to build products and services around its DevShare development sharing program.
ComScore’s Ad Metrix service named Yahoo as the leading server of the display ads on the net for November, with Fox Interactive Media leading all publishers in display ads served per visit by more than 2 to 1 over any competitor. Display ads are defined as any rich media or static images served and loaded into a web browser, not including video streams, text or paid search ad impressions.
Top 20 Ad Publishers Ranked by Share of Online Display Ads – Nov. 2007
Total U.S. – Home/Work/University Locations
Publisher Share of Display Ads Display Ads/Visit
Yahoo! Sites 18.8% 20.5
Fox Interactive Media 16.3% 47.5
Microsoft Sites 6.7% 9.8
Time Warner Network 5.8% 10.1
Facebook.com 1.5% 8.4
eBay 1.2% 8.4
Google Sites 1.0% 1.3
Viacom Digital 1.0% 20.6
United Online, Inc 0.5% 18.3
Amazon Sites 0.4% 8.2
New York Times Digital 0.4% 11.5
CBS Sports 0.3% 22.4
Comcast.net 0.3% 4.0
Photobucket.com 0.3% 16.8
Bebo.com 0.3% 27.2
ESPN 0.3% 6.2
Weather Channel, The 0.3% 8.8
NFL Internet Group 0.3% 12.9
Ask Network 0.2% 3.4
Glam Media 0.2% 11.9
Total Internet Audience 100.0% 35.1
Source: comScore Ad Metrix
Filed under: WIRELESS
Ericsson officials have announced that the company has partnered with PC maker Lenovo to provide mobile-broadband modules to Lenovo notebook PCs. The modules will be based on existing high speed packet access technology and are expected to debut sometime this year. (The Washington Post/Reuters 2/4)
Filed under: GAMING
Microsoft has announced plans to introduce its cheaper Xbox Arcade console in Japan, where the company has struggled to gain a foothold with consumers. The gaming system will be void of a hard drive and will focus on more casual-themed games, as Microsoft continues its attempt to connect with Japanese gamers. (Yahoo!/Agence France-Presse 2/4)
Gaming publisher Electronic Arts is predicting that European sales of Sony’s PlayStation 3 may nearly quadruple those of rival Microsoft’s Xbox 360. The European market is expected to play a major role in gaming sales, as some analysts expect the two companies to post similar North American unit sales. (GameDaily BIZ 2/1)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY
The Boston-based Motus Corp. is looking to capitalize on the popularity of Nintendo’s Wii with its new “Darwin” controller. The device is based on the company’s motion-capture technology and is expected to better mimic and capture a player’s motions, according to this article. (Technology Review 2/4)
