Daily Marauder

ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA by Marauder

ONLINE SERVICES/INTERACTIVE MEDIA

CBS Labs, which has been testing new HD streaming products, has also rolled out a labs version of a new product called Social Viewing Room. The idea is that you show up to the site, pick a show that’s on right now, and watch it with your friends or whoever is there. You can comment, LOL or take quizzes for points. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/10/02/cbs-testing-social-viewing-room-watch-stuff-with-strangers-and-talk-during-the-show 10/2)

So far, the player is barely functional but interesting strategy none the less.

The Copyright Royalty Board has set rates that companies like Apple and Amazon must pay music publishers for each digital track they sell. And the rates, drum roll please, . . are the same as they were before: 9 cents per song. So everyone can breathe easy. iTunes won’t shut down! (Not that it ever was going to shut down, but it was a good story). (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/10/02/the-copyright-royalty-board-does-nothing-itunes-rates-remain-the-same 10/2)

Sling Media, the creators of a hardware device that lets users stream their home television signal to an Internet connected device anywhere (with a software download), is preparing to launch their new video portal, Sling.com. The company first mentioned the new portal earlier this year but has been quiet since then. (http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/10/01/slingmedia-prepares-to-launch-their-video-portal-at-slingcom 10/1)

More than half of the viewers for NBC “Saturday Night Live‘s” recent skits with Tina Fey as Sarah Palin watched the sketches on the Web, says a survey by Solutions Research Group. About 51% of viewers who have seen at least one of the skits are watching on the Internet. (Iwantmedia 10/2, http://www.tvweek.com/news/2008/10/snl_palin_skits_seen_more_on_w.php 10/1)

NBC asked YouTube to pull a mashup ad yesterday from the Obama campaign, according to reports, that combines NBC and MSNBC news footage to imagine a future where John McCain wins the election in November. NBC also asked the campaign to quit using the ad, which has been posted on VoteForChange.com and has been racking up thousands of views on political sites such as DailyKos as an embed. (Cynopsis 10/2)

PBS is distributing its election special The Choice 2008 for free across multiple platforms the day after it airs on the Network on Oct. 14. It will be up on iTunes, available in segments on YouTube’s PBS channel or viewable on the Frontline page of PBS.org as well as local affiliate station sites. Meanwhile PBS’ Boston affiliate WGBH has agreed to allow Comcast to carry today’s VP debate (and each subsequent presidential debate) On Demand for New England customers. Finally a new tie-up between BBC World News and PBS will bring co-branded digital offerings to local PBS affiliate sites including video and audio news summaries. (Cynopsis 10/2)

For a lighter look at the simmering election coverage check out a new jointly run destination on FunnyorDie.com put together by the satirist at FunnyorDie, HuffingtonPost and 236.com. (Cynopsis 10/2)

MSNBC.com launched a new application for Windows Media Center users (which comes bundled with Vista Home Premium or Ultimate) designed to provide an immersive news experience. It aggregates video and graphic coverage of the latest Election news, top stories, and U.S. weather by zip code. It also enables users to build customized video playlists, browse by genre or search for video by keyword. (Cynopsis 10/2)

National Public Radio launched its own social network dubbed the NPR Community. It provides a forum for both users and NPR editors to expand upon stories they are working on, allowing members to view popular stories and comment on posts. Create a public profile to help attract similar-thinking friends by featuring your favorite NPR shows, music, movies or books. (Cynopsis 10/2)

The Hollywood Reporter says AOL Money & Finance will use Bloomberg video clips daily through a new deal brokered by Time Warner. The Hollywood Reporter (10/1)

NBC.com claims September was a record-breaking month for the site with nearly 25 million uniques, shattering the previous record of 17.4 million according to Omniture data. The site also posted a record 28.8 million short-form video streams, besting the previous high of 22.4 million. (Cynopsis 10/2)

Disney.com and DisneyChannel.com scored record online traffic following Disney Channel’s “The Suite Life on Deck” weekend premiere event, which used on air promotions to drive viewers to the sites. Viewers tuned into part one on Sept. 26 at 8p on Disney Channel and were then directed to go to Disney.com to watch part two, available exclusively online prior to its on-air debut the following night. During the period nearly 800,000 The Suite Life on Deck videos were streamed at Disney.com, which drew a record 4.2 million daily unique visitors on Sept. 27. (Cynopsis 10/2)

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