Daily Marauder

ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer says the software giant is no longer interested in acquiring Yahoo. “We are trying to have discussions about deals with Yahoo,” he says. Also: Growing influence of investors suggests that Jerry Yang’s days as Yahoo CEO may be numbered. (Iwantmedia 5/22, http://www.informationweek.com/news/internet/search/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=207801572 5/21, http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/08_22/b4086000351097.htm 5/21)

Twitter, the free micro-blogging service, is believed to be closing a new round of $15 million in funding, which is estimated to bring the company’s valuation to about $80 million. A new investor is said to be leading the round with existing investor Union Square Ventures also participating. (Iwantmedia 5/22, http://gigaom.com/2008/05/21/twitter-series-b-funding-done-raises-15-mm 5/21)

Fresh from its record March Madness streaming effort, CBS is forming a college sports-themed vertical ad network to deliver display and video ads across CBSSports.com, NCAA.com (produced by CBSSports.com) and the roughly 215 official college athletic sites operated by the CBS College Sports network (formerly known as CSTV.) CBS estimates the network reaches 10 million unique users, based on March metrics. (Cynopsis 5/22, http://www.reuters.com/article/internetNews/idUSN2139155420080521 5/21)

“American Idol” is still the most-watched U.S. program, but this year people have less to say about it. Daily conversations about the Fox show have sharply decreased since last year, says a survey by Keller Fay Group, a research firm specializing in word-of-mouth analysis. (Iwantmedia 5/22, http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=127222 5/20)

Facebook and MySpace aren’t translating their popularity into advertising revenue, “in spite of the media hype,” says eMarketer. The research firm is downgrading its ad-spend forecasts for the sector. Also: Valuations on social networks “are pure speculation,” says Barry Diller. (Iwantmedia 5/22, http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/may/21/facebook.myspace 5/21, http://blogs.reuters.com/mediafile/2008/05/21/social-nets-are-nice-but-wheres-the-money 5/21)

Disney, News Corp. and Viacom are settling a copyright lawsuit against the movie-sharing Web site ShowStash.com after owner Timur Azaev agreed to stop infringing films and pay damages of $2.77 million. The lawsuit’s aim was to stop “blatant and illegal activity.” (Iwantmedia 5/22, http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=aGN0v919uxD4 5/21)

YouTube is “very old news,” says former Disney CEO Michael Eisner, whose company Tornante is involved in online video through its Vuguru studio. “It is to the Internet what the nickelodeon was to the movies — a very preliminary installment of what is to come.” (Iwantmedia 5/22, http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/microsoft/archives/139281.asp?from=blog_last3 5/20)

Michael Eisner divulged some details about Vuguru’s next big online series. (This one will launch during the 50-webisode run of Foreign Body, a prequel to the Robin Cook hospital thriller about medical tourism set in India, set to launch May 27.) Back on Topps stars Randy and Jason Sklar, former hosts of ESPN’s Cheap Seats, as two of a group of executives vying to succeed the fictional founder of their company, Marvin Topps. The yarn is constructed to synergize with Topps trading cards, acquired by Eisner last year. (Cynopsis 5/22)

The first IndieFlix MyFestival is in conjunction with Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF). MyFestival will host and stream 10 features and 10 shorts for the duration of this year’s SIFF. Watch the films on the MyFestival site and vote for the best. Winner in each category will receive a cash prize that end of the fest. (http://www.independentfilmsdirect.com/content/view/2538/51 5/21)

RDF Digital is producing original webisodes based on RDF’s faux Japanese game show format Banzai, which will have an exclusive home on MySpaceTV for the first 30 days before being syndicated to popular U.S. platforms YouTube, Hulu, MetaCafe and Dailymotion. The show, which has aired on Fox, USA, Comedy Central and G4 in the U.S., has attracted an array of celebrity guests including Angelina Jolie, Kelsey Grammar and Bill Murray. (Cynopsis 5/22)

ABC.com is upgrading its full-episode broadband player with new features for the fall season. Among the bells and whistles: the ability to send video links that can be embedded on blogs and social networks. ABC.com was the first full-episode player online when it launched in 2006. ((Iwantmedia 5/22, http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3i6003c2212b7640e814abce567d4006c1 5/22)

Newly renamed and reorganized KIT Digital (formerly ROO) will announce the acquisition of digital video content creator Kamera today, adding mobile content to its suite of IPTV solutions for the first time. Kamera offers video content to over 100 clients, including 40+ mobile operators and 70+ broadband media publishers, enabling companies such as Vodafone, MSN, Orange, Telefonica, O2, Hutchinson and China Mobile to deliver IPTV channels and content to their customers over mobile and online networks. (Cynopsis 5/22)

Netco MediaPass has acquired Gigantic, a shingle founded by musicvid and blurb helmer Kevin Kerslake, and the merged entity has created a series of skeins for broadband and mobile distribution.  Among the shows in the pipeline: “The Shop,” an action sport reality skein shot in the Rockies; “Get Over It,” a funkier version of “Laguna Beach”; and a music docu series revolving around concerts across the country. (http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117986298.html?categoryId=20&cs=1 5/21)