Filed under: Feature | Tags: Arcade Fire, Black Mirror, interactive, Neon Bible, online video
ARCADE FIRE DOES IT AGAIN: BLACK MIRROR
It started with the interactive video for Neon Bible. Arcade Fire returns with the hotness on their second installment of online video fun, this time represented in a video for the song Black Mirror from Arcade Fire’s latest album Neon Bible. By clicking on the numbers 1 – 6 on your keyboard, you can control the several layers of audio within the song and become a song producer yourself. The video also features art by Tracy Maurice.
To say that this video is truly inspirational both from an artistic standpoint and also from its interactive side wouldn’t be enough. The features provided are simple enough for anyone to use. Engaging and creative as all hell. Thanks to BG for sending.
Filed under: BROADCAST/CABLE
Sunday marks the 35th year of the Grammy Awards telecast on CBS. But with the Grammys battling the perception that it is an icon of the older generation — and with CBS representing a similarly aged demo — the show’s relevance faces challenges by many newer rivals. (http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i09f751dd163aa41170327fbe0b530860 2/8)
The WGA strike could be headed toward a settlement as early as next week, according to this article. The tentative settlement reportedly gives the writers 2% of revenue from Web streams of episodes, starting in the third year of the pact. None of the parties involved, citing a news blackout, would comment. The New York Times (2/8)
USA has paid $50 million to acquire the network rights to seven films from Disney, including hits “National Treasure: Book of Secrets” and “No Country for Old Men.” The deal is also expected to benefit corporate siblings NBC, Sci Fi, and the recently acquired Oxygen. (Variety 2/7)
Filed under: ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
Yahoo is said to have scheduled a special board of directors meeting on Friday to determine, effectively, the fate of the company. After a week of hectic negotiating, it is clear that no one is going to step in with a competing acquisition offer to what Microsoft put on the table last Friday. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/08/yahoo-board-to-determine-fate-of-company-today 2/8)
We’ve speculated previously that Microsoft would retain the Yahoo brand, but until now its been a well educated guess. In a BusinessWeek article, Steve Ballmer now confirms it, saying simply that “Yahoo, the brand, will live.” (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/08/ballmer-confirms-yahoo-brand-will-live-on-msn-the-likely-casualty 2/8)
Yahoo launched its live streaming service Yahoo Live yesterday, the first major internet company to enter the live streaming space against startups like Justin.tv, Blogtv, Mogulus and others. If Techcrunch was putting together a report card on Yahoo Live, day one would simply read FAIL. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/07/yahoo-live-fails-to-scale 2/7)
Google is yet to receive any objections from European Union regulators about its proposed $3.1 billion purchase of Internet advertising company DoubleClick, which suggests that the EU is close to approving the deal. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission signed off on the deal in December. (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=aAaNYSD2wPRM 2/8)
Norman Pearlstine, managing director of the Carlyle Group, says that Time Warner has a “strong” chance of selling off its AOL access unit. Also, CEO Jeff Bewkes is “happy” with the cash flow at magazine division Time Inc. Speculation of a possible sale of Time Inc. is “outside the company.” (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=aNKVCvRqH3Bk 2/8)
Ustream.tv is said to be in advanced talks with Microsoft to be acquired for $50 million, according to a report from Valleywag. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/08/microsoft-to-acquire-ustreamtv-for-50-million 2/8)
CBS is teaming up with social networking site Facebook to offer March Madness brackets as part of its NCAA basketball-related tournament coverage. Users will be able to compare their picks with friends on Facebook, and CBS plans to sell ad sponsorships tied to the site. (http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2008/02/04/daily71.html 2/8)
The U.S. Dept. of Justice launched an antitrust investigation into price fixing on the yet-to-launch online subscription music service TotalMusic backed by Universal and Sony BMG, reports MusicAlly. The DoJ also looked closely at Universal and Sony’s former PressPlay as well as the Warner/EMI/BMG’s MusicNet venture with RealNetworks, both of which were eclipsed by iTunes when the iPod took off.
Now Amazon is making a move in the direction of becoming a shopping search engine. This week, it launched a program called Product Ads, which lets any Web merchant buy cost-per-click ads on Amazon linked to specific product searches. No announcement was made other than a blast e-mail to product marketers and the addition of a paragraph at the bottom of this page describing how you can advertise with Amazon. Although it is a limited test for now (in the Electronics & Computers, Home & Garden, Tools, and Toys, Kids & Baby categories), Product Ads is a direct response to the encroachment of Google and product search engines like eBay’s Shopping.com. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/07/amazon-quietly-launches-product-ads-secretly-wants-to-become-a-shopping-search-engine 2/7)
Among Super Bowl advertisers, the fastest growing web site from Super Bowl Sunday to Monday was Fox Interactive Media’s MySpace.com/SuperBowlAds , according to Nielsen Online, increasing 104% from 441,000 to 900,000 unique visitors. Victoria’s Secret and FOX Sports on MSN also saw significant daily gains, growing 86 percent and 72 percent, respectively. Web traffic increased 24% overall from Sunday to Monday among Super Bowl advertisers collectively.
BravoTV.com has launched a web spin-off of Project Runway following the trials and tribulations of former designer and Project participant Malan Breton. This season’s 12 designers will also participate in an online fashion challenge running Feb. 21 – March 6, judged by BravoTV.com users.
Super Tuesday web results are trickling in. ABCNews.com reported that page views spiked 53% from a typical day with most of the traffic visiting the Politics section, which featured an interactive map providing real-time results. CNN.com is reporting 97 million page views and 11.9 million unique visitors for the day, both highs since the site relaunched on July 1.
Filed under: WIRELESS
MySpace exec Travis Katz predicts that more than half of the site’s traffic will be from mobile within five years. MySpace and rival Facebook rolled out mobile sites last year and are already seeing a surge of user interest. “Mobile is one of the most important strategic initiatives,” says Katz. (http://www.nma.co.uk/Logon/ResourceBarrier.aspx?RequiredServices=17,|&PipelinedPage=/Articles/36749/MySpace+plans+for+half+of+traffic+from+mobile+users.html&PipelinedQueryString=liArticleID%3d36749 2/8)
British chip designer ARM reportedly plans to show a prototype cellphone based on Google’s Android platform next Monday at the Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona. Google may upset the wireless industry with its software designed to make the Web accessible via mobile devices. (http://www.reuters.com/article/businessNews/idUSWEB442320080207 2/7)
Filed under: GAMING
Nintendo has introduced a game player network for its hand-held DS that brings sports fans together during live events and allows them to interact with fellow gamers, access videos and even order concessions. The “Nintendo Fan Network” is part of the game maker’s new marketing emphasis on connecting the Wii and DS with fans of baseball, golf and monster trucks. (Advertising Age 2/7)
Strong game titles “Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare” and “Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock” helped boost Activision’s third-quarter revenue up 80%, according to the company. Chairman and CEO Robert Kotick also said that the company had been, for the first time, ranked as the No. 1 U.S. console and handheld publisher for the calendar year. (American City Business Journals/Los Angeles 2/7)
Filed under: TECHNOLOGY
An Apple TV patent filing lays out how widgets could play a role in the way we watch TV. The filing is an update to an older one from 2006. In it, Apple describes how widgets could appear on-screen while people are watching an Apple TV. the widgets could provide live sport scores, news feeds, or chat functionality to talk to other viewers or friends elsewhere. Really, any widget you have on your desktop could just as easily be on your TV screen. The patent describes these widgets being triggered either by a new remote control that looks a lot like an iPod Nano, or by information in the broadcast signal itself. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/02/07/apple-patent-suggests-a-way-to-bring-widgets-and-chat-to-tv 2/7)
CableLabs will begin testing Solekai Systems’Tuning Resolver Interface Simulator, or TRIS, which will enable one-way cable-ready devices, such as TiVo DVRs, to access switched digital video channels. Cable companies are looking to offer the resolvers commercially in the second quarter of this year. (Multichannel News 2/7)
