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Tue, September 18, 2007
A very common question we get from clients about online video is, “how long should our video content be?” The answer isn’t really cut and dried, because it depends on the quality and substance of the video. But, in general, we like to say that people watching video on their PC prefer short-form. According to the recent story by Ad Age, “as content gets longer, consumers gravitate toward the TV. For content 30 minutes and longer, about 60% of respondents prefer the TV set. But there are still numerous consumers who prefer long-form content on the PC: 3% prefer it for 60-minute-plus videos and 7% for 30-minute-plus. Those numbers rise to 8% and 15% when 18- to 24-year-olds are asked their preferences.”
So, that next video you create specifically for the web – keep it short and to the point. People have work to do!
Read on (but you may need a log-in).
Sun, March 25, 2007
NBC Universal and News Corp have joined forces to create a yet-to-be-named venture focused on distributing premium online video content over a network of sites estimated to reach 96% of all U.S. Internet users.
What this will mean for YouTube remains to be seen, but if they are successful getting this off the ground, this is could be a ground-breaking initiative which we all should keep a very close eye on.
According to the story, "The goal is to create a one-stop source for consumers and advertisers seeking premium video content. Both full-length TV shows, movies and clips will be offered. In addition, consumers will be invited to manipulate the premium content to create mashups and parodies. Non-program-related user-generated content will also be accepted, but is not the focus of the enterprise said Jeff Zucker, president and CEO of NBCU. Both NBCU and News Corp. will continue to maintain their existing independent Web sites. The new venture will exist as a standalone destination, and will also be imbedded as a branded entity within Yahoo, Microsoft's MSN, AOL and News Corp.'s MySpace. Most content will be free and ad-supported. Anything sold for a fee on iTunes will carry that practice to the new venture."
Click here to read the full story.
Thu, December 21, 2006
So all the rage is VIDEO, VIDEO, VIDEO. Now ask the consumer what they think about online video when you sprinkle some advertising into the mix. Not surprising, more than 78% of users referred to the advertising as intrusive. When you look at the basic concept of ‘experiential marketing’ which is in many respects what the web encompasses, you could potentially be doing more harm than good in trying to promote your product via video. Be careful of where and how you place the online video advertising.
Click here to read more.
Sat, December 09, 2006
Well, it looks like Disney has had it with YouTube. According to Reuters, "A senior Walt Disney Co. executive said she sees limits to how long her company will tolerate copyright infringement of its programming by users of Google's online video sharing site YouTube." Video sharing sites like YouTube hide behind the Digital Millennium Copyright Act which protects Web sites from liability for copyright infringement if they take down illegal material when notified. It's like a ‘virtual cease and desist’ I guess but it’s not long until this clearly becomes a much bigger problem for YouTube.
Click here to learn more.
Mon, November 20, 2006
And the lawsuits continue. "Continuing its aggressive campaign to remove unlicensed clips from video-sharing sites, Universal Music Group Friday sued social networking site MySpace.com for copyright infringement. The suit charges that MySpace doesn't adequately police users from posting Universal-owned clips. "The foundation of MySpace is its so-called 'user-generated content.' However, much of that content is not 'user-generated' at all," alleges the music label, which counts U2, Fergie, The Killers, and Kanye West among its artists. "Rather, it is the 'user-stolen' intellectual property of others, and MySpace is a willing partner in that theft. The suit comes just four weeks after Universal filed a similar complaint against video-sharing sites Grouper and Bolt." Read it at MediaPost.
Click here to read more.
Thu, November 16, 2006
According to a study commissioned by online audio and video search engine Podzinger, "consumers typically only play 15% of an entire online video or audio. The study also indicated that consumers are willing to tolerate 10- to 15-second video ads as part of viewing online content. However, video ads were considered annoying if repeated too often. The study also found that consumers are almost six times more likely to play content online than to download it, and that entertainment accounts for 36% of all online video play, but only 6% of available video. The Podzinger survey was conducted by market research firm Pathfinder Innovation in one-on-one interviews in September in U.S. markets including Cambridge, MA, Chicago, and Los Angeles." Thanks Mediapost.
Read more.
Fri, September 15, 2006
We recently received an email from YouTube notifying us that one of our clients videos has been removed due to copyright infringement. The request was put in by a major union to have the video pulled off YouTube. Our client told us they had paid the rights to use it online, so we don't understand why they just removed it without notice.
The lesson here is that similar to MySpace, your content can be pulled without notice so beware about relying too heavily on these sites for your marketing/promotions.
You have to keep in mind that Youtube, in particular, is under heavy scrutiny for housing copyright material and is trying to protect their name by pleasing content owners. If they get a complaint about copyright infringement, it looks as though they will play on the safe side and remove the content without any notice to you.
Here is a copy of the letter we received:
Dear YouTube Member,
This is to notify you that we have removed or disabled access to the following material as a result of a third-party notification by {UNION NAME PROTECTED} claiming that this material is infringing:
CLIENT NAME GOES HERE - PROTECTING CLIENT IDENTITY Please Note: Repeat incidents of copyright infringement will result in the deletion of your account and all videos uploaded to that account. In order to avoid future strikes against your account, please delete any videos to which you do not own the rights, and refrain from uploading additional videos that infringe on the copyrights of others. For more information about YouTube's copyright policy, please read the Copyright Tips guide.
If you elect to send us a counter notice, to be effective it must be a written communication provided to our designated agent that includes substantially the following (please consult your legal counsel or see 17 U.S.C. Section 512(g)(3) to confirm these requirements):
(A) A physical or electronic signature of the subscriber.
(B) Identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access to it was disabled.
(C) A statement under penalty of perjury that the subscriber has a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled.
(D) The subscriber's name, address, and telephone number, and a statement that the subscriber consents to the jurisdiction of Federal District Court for the judicial district in which the address is located, or if the subscriberis address is outside of the United States, for any judicial district in which the service provider may be found, and that the subscriber will accept service of process from the person who provided notification under subsection (c)(1)(C) or an agent of such person.
Such written notice should be sent to our designated agent as follows:
DMCA Complaints
YouTube, Inc.
PO Box 2053
San Mateo, CA 94401
Email: copyright@youtube.com
Please note that under Section 512(f) of the Copyright Act, any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material or activity was removed or disabled by mistake or misidentification may be subject to liability.
Sincerely,
YouTube, Inc.
Read more.
Tue, August 29, 2006
Let’s not forget that the web is one of the few active mediums in which we talk with consumers. People online have some kind of direction and purpose and, unlike passive mediums like TV and/or radio, web advertising can quickly become annoying. Enter the :05 second ad which the author of the article below argues could be the ad format of preference by web users. Currently, online users are being forced to watch :15 and :30 pre-roll video before watching online content. This is clearly the television model moved online and I think over time will need to be changed. The :05 second spot makes sense to me – let’s see if publishers agree and ad more inventory.
Read more.
Thu, August 17, 2006
I think it’s fair to say that the concept of select distribution has been forever disrupted with the advent of the Internet. We’ve seen discount offers which used to be given to a select few now being proliferated online on sites like Broadway Box to the general viewing public. We’ve seen b-roll footage of productions meant for press end up on Google Video and YouTube. If you have content - whether its audio tracks, interviews, etc. - I would be very careful of how and who it is distributed too if you expect it to stay out of the public eye. Take a look at the following article that shows what the television space is currently dealing with.
Click here to read more.
Thu, July 20, 2006
Is it just me, or does YouTube feel like it could turn into a Napster-like situation all over again? I remember the days when everybody had Napster and downloaded free music at will until the record companies stepped in and used the law to their advantage. Now, everyone uses YouTube to watch all kinds of video for free. Problem is, a lot of the footage violates copyright laws and simply can not be legally posted online for all to view.
This week Robert Tur, the independent news reporter who shot the footage of the OJ Simpson chase by helicopter, sued YouTube.com for copyright infringement.
According to the Associated Press story...
The suit alleges Tur's images of the beating of trucker Reginald Denny during the riots have been downloaded thousands of times. The practice is ruining the market for his work while attracting lucrative advertising revenue to the Web site, Tur said in an interview. The complaint alleges that YouTube encourages infringement by allowing the easy uploading and viewing of footage. San Mateo-based YouTube said the lawsuit was without merit. Tur's video clips were removed from the site as soon as it learned of his complaint, YouTube spokeswoman Julie Supan said in a prepared statement.
Can YouTube claim they are just the messenger or 'middle man' of illegally posted content? If the film studios and television networks can't find ways to pull a profit stream out of it, I doubt the YouTube as we know it today will be the same for long.
Click here to read more.
Mon, July 10, 2006
What will be the first 'American Idol' for broadband? There are plenty of players trying to answer that question right now. On July 11, MSN will launch Fan Club which is a show that lets viewers watch and influence the daily doings of a minor league baseball team. This fall, Mark Burnett will launch Gold Rush which will send American's on a nationwide scavenger hunt. These are just a few of the many shows that will be introduced to the market soon with the intent of distributing via broadband channels.
Will advertisers jump on the opportunities presented by these new shows? We will have to wait and see.
Here is a great article sizing up how big the broadband entertainment space really is right now.
Click here to read more.
Wed, June 28, 2006
First they send a cease and desist to YouTube to remove Saturday Night Live footage from their site... now they have inked a marketing partnership together. I don't get it.
In many respects, YouTube is about as hot as Napster was years back. Will their rapid success be their ultimate downfall? When you consider they are housing copywritten footage I would guess is worthy of about 1 million separate law suits, I'd be surprised if they didn't start hitting some major bumps shortly. I could be wrong.
Until that day comes, we will continue to use their services as they have clearly found a huge audience online.
Click here to read more.
Mon, June 26, 2006
Sure, it is clear that mobile video will continue to grow. The question really is how fast will it grow? Here is an excerpt from a recent PC Magazine article. The Broadcast and Unicast Mobile TV Services study was conducted by principal analyst Ken Hyers, and examined market dynamics including industry players, enabling technologies and business models. Among the key findings, Hyers said he expects to see upwards of 500 million international mobile TV subscribers by 2011.
Analysts said that the concept of mobile video -- essentially TV on the road, with ads -- was familiar to both U.S. consumers and broadcasters, who could see it as an extension of their existing TV content contracts. Still, Hyers noted that, like television, a communications infrastructure would have to be in place before the technology could take off.
So... to me, that says it's still some time away.
What I found most interesting (yet, not surprising) is this tidbit of information from the story. "We asked consumers earlier this year what features were most important in considering their next cell phone purchase – text messaging was a very important feature but accessing video content was the lowest on the list," Chanko said. "As of this year the idea that a phone can play video was not considered important enough for the majority of consumers in terms of planning their next cell phone purchase. That speaks volumes to me – it says right now consumers in this country aren't really interested in the 'gee-whiz' factor, they want to use their phones to make calls and send text messages."
Click here to read more.
Tue, June 13, 2006
comScore Networks has just released a new video metrix service to help advertisers gauge the effectiveness of video advertising.
We are currently running a ton of online video advertising and think it's a natural fit for the Broadway market (assuming you have compelling video content handy).
Thanks MediaPost for the lead - here are some key points they pulled from the report.
- The composition of video consumers is split among males (52 percent) and females (48 percent)
- The male audience is much more engaged with video, with the average male viewer seeing nearly two hours per month, while females consume approximately one hour and twenty minutes of video per month
- Overall, males in the 25-34 age group have the highest intensity of video consumption, with an average of 140 minutes of video consumed per month
- Approximately 16 percent of all time spent viewing online video takes place during prime time hours, while 22 percent occurs on the weekend
- During March, approximately 42 percent of all U.S. Internet users streamed video through an entertainment site, and more than 33 percent did so from a portal
- On average, consumers spent close to one hour per month viewing Internet video from work locations during March
Click here to read more.
Fri, March 31, 2006
According to a new report, one in four web users view video online at least once a week. Here are the key statistics from the report:
Who are they?
- Almost two-thirds--65 percent--of those who view Web video at least once a week are male
- the average age of the weekly-plus viewers is 33
What do they watch?
- "Entertainment and news are among the most popular offerings. When asked what type of content they found most appealing, online video watchers said the most attractive content was video that could only be found online--and not TV, DVD, or other media."
Click here to read more.
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