ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA
ABC.com is expanding its widget offerings adding new embeddable widgets around primetime shows such as The Bachelor: London Calling, Brother’s & Sisters, Desperate Housewives, Grey’s Anatomy, Samantha Who?? and Ugly Betty. The applications, which have been averaging 170,000 views/day for previously launched Lost and Dancing with the Stars versions according to ABC, allow viewers to embed and share video clips, photos, news alerts and mobile-optimized content. ABC also has a widget as part of the Start Fresh campaign, promising to plant one tree sapling for every ten videos viewed on the apps. (Cynopsis 4/9)
I’d like to take a moment to call a moratorium on the word “widget.” Let’s just accept the fact that, apart from a rare few, senior executives have no idea what a widget is. The problem is in the pudding. . .or in the name in this case. Try this. Google the word “widget.” In general, widget (pronounced WIH-jit) is a term used to refer to any discrete object, usually of some mechanical nature and relatively small size, when it doesn’t have a name, when you can’t remember the name, or when you’re talking about a class of certain unknown objects in general. So, whose bright idea was it to name these applications widgets? Let’s revolt. Moving on, I commend ABC for devising a widget strategy. That said, as a blogger myself, what I really want is a video application that allows me to play my favorites across content providers. A personalized video player if you will.
Desperate Housewives Widget
Time Warner’s struggling AOL online unit could be the big loser if Facebook’s new instant-messaging chat feature takes off. Facebook users may become “addicted to Facebook chat and begin to decrease their usage of AIM,” according to Pali Capital analyst Richard Greenfield. (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.nypost.com/seven/04092008/business/im_chat_not_just_domain_of_aol_105671.htm 4/9)
I definitely agree with this article. In fact I already did agree. See my post below from Monday:
Let’s just say I was more than just a bit excited to try out Facebook Chat which as I see it, stands to blow AOL IM right out of the water. Here’s why: It’s always on whenever you connect to Facebook. It’s easier to use and functionality free. If you want to turn it out and stop receiving messages, you can change to offline mode. The only con is that I only receive notification that I have a new message if the window is still open. Perhaps, adding some sound when new messages are received would help.
Yahoo’s photo sharing site Flickr added an option to upload short videos up to 90 seconds long and 150 MB in size. (Cynopsis 4/9, http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080409/ap_on_hi_te/flickr_video 4/9)
Did Flickr just become a YouTube competitor on the sly? No, not really. Video uploads are only available to Pro members (as opposed to everyone can upload on YouTube) and really seem to represent a compliment to the photostream rather than stand alone video.
Tanzania School Choir
Disney CEO Bob Iger says he expects primetime TV shows to be simulcast online, runs ABC like a content studio given that its distribution brand value is diminished, and regards media concentration rules as “irrelevant” in the digital age. “I laugh at it. It’s old world,” he says. (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/business/news/e3id751287ff1c2313e1282c0878b5f1b6a 4/8)
CBS saw its television ratings for the NCAA basketball championship game fall this year. But the network made up some of the TV audience shortfall on the Internet, where its Webcast during the tournament lured 4.33 million users, more than double last year’s 1.75 million. (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=at2Ujy1guJbg 4/8)
(Below) This would all but STUNT creative growth on the internet. Sites like MySpace and Facebook already face external pressure to maintain a safe environment for their users. This added legal weight will provide more trouble than its worth to these online giants in essence limiting the amount of functionality available to users at the experience level.
Recent U.S. court rulings may change the broad legal shield Web sites have enjoyed against lawsuits filed over material posted by their users, which has allowed the likes of YouTube and MySpace to flourish. The decisions could “inspire a wave” of new lawsuits and “create a chilling effect.” (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9911501-7.html 4/8)
Hulu’s ambition is to bring global content to America and the rest of the world, says CEO Jason Kilar. The online video joint venture between News Corp. and NBC Universal is available for the moment only in the United States. “We have an ambition to be global.” (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.screendaily.com/ScreenDailyArticle.aspx?intStoryID=38154 4/8)
The EU’s Article 29 data privacy group has determined that search engines should destroy users’ IP addresses after no longer than six months. Google routinely keeps users’ identities based on IP clicks for 24 months. (Cynopsis 4/9)
Yahoo plans to acquire of the assets of Tensa Kft, more commonly known as IndexTools. The company’s technology will be used by Yahoo to analyze its clients’ online marketing efforts. IndexTools will deliver metrics for online campaigns that run across Yahoo’s entire network. (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/article/144313/yahoo_acquire_indextools_analytics_business.html 4/9)
The hip-hop parade continues in the online video world. New York DJ Funkmaster Flex stars in Funk Flex TV, a new channel on Ripe Digital’s Flow TV service available on demand on Time Warner, Comcast and Cablevision and online via flow.tv. (Cynopsis 4/9)
In this episode, Flex interviews Chris Brown. I have nothing but love for Flex but there’s something less than interesting about watching a video-taped radio interview.
Unknown Vector unveiled a new interface for sharing video collections across social networks called uvLayer. The browser-based application, based on a downloadable version released earlier, allows users to drag and drop videos, create playlists and push thumbnail stacks of content to friends’ profile pages in 13 different languages. (Cynopsis 4/9)
I like this drag and drop philosophy a whole lot. I don’t know how well this works as a stand alone product but as incorporated into existing social networking spaces, this seems like an obvious ease-of-use upgrade.
C-SPAN, the U.S. private nonprofit cable public affairs network, is launching its own channel on YouTube, focused on the upcoming Pennsylvania primary. Users will be able to upload their videos and share what they believe is the most important issue in the election. (Iwantmedia 4/9, http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/04/08/c-span-launches-channel-on-youtube 4/8)
Adobe has launched Adobe Media Player 1.0 and a Adobe TV. Adobe Media Player offers playback of streamed, downloaded or locally-stored video in Adobe Flash and can be viewed in 1080p, 720p or 480i resolutions. iTunes style the player allows users to subscribe to television shows and other content and automatically receive new episodes when they are available. Adobe TV is available at tv.adobe.com or as a network in Adobe Media Player and offers “expert instruction and original series programming” about Adobe products. Adobe TV offers four channels targeted at Photographers, Designers, Video Professionals, and Developers. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/04/08/adobe-launches-media-player-adobe-tv 4/8)
The NHL launched a new ad supported broadband video service today, just in time for the hockey playoffs. NHL Network Online, accessible from NHL.com, features 7 channels of on demand multimedia programming, viewable through a newly revamped video player powered by NeuLion.
Online retailers are planning to invest more in social networks and Web video to reach customers as they continue to rely on paid searches and e-mail marketing, according to a Shop.org survey conducted by Forrester. About 65% of the 125 retailers polled said they would increase their use of social network ads in 2008, while 67% plan to place greater emphasis on online video. (Advertising Age 4/8)
