As Publicis' VivaKi unit hastens to develop a killer video ad unit, MTV Networks -- by its own estimate -- might have beaten them to the punch. So, what is the most effective and audience-friendly ad product for short-form online video? A five-second pre-roll combined with a ten-second lower 1/3 ad unit, according to "Project Inform," a study unveiled Wednesday by MTVN in cooperation with marketing researcher InsightExpress.

To arrive at its conclusion, MTVN partnered with three top advertisers in three disparate categories, and ran tests in more than 50 million short-form video streams across MTV.com, ComedyCentral.com, VH1.com, NickJr.com and CMT.com.

Specifically, "Project Inform" sought to understand the relative effectiveness of various ad products in brand lift, as measured by industry standard metrics like unaided awareness, aided awareness and purchase intent. Additionally, the project sought to identify the consumer likeability of each ad product.

"Short-form online video consumption is exploding, but there's still a lot of confusion among marketers over which ad formats deliver for brands without compromising the user experience," said Nada Stirratt, EVP of digital advertising at MTVN. "By exploring the viability of new ad products around short-form online video, Project Inform provides the type of insights crucial to creating the innovative, custom solutions that this marketplace needs."

In 2008, MTV Networks began gathering insights on various existing and new video ad formats. Two ad product packages rose to the top and these, in addition to a :30 second pre-roll, were the subject of the Project Inform study launched in January.

The packages tested included a lower 1/3 product suite, or a 5-second pre-roll video coupled with an animated 10-second lower 1/3 ad overlay. The lower 1/3 is a semi-transparent flash unit that launches from the bottom third of the video screen approximately 10 seconds after video content begins.

Another was a side-loader product suite, or 5-second pre-roll coupled with a 10-second animated side-loader. The side-loader is a custom unit that slides out of the right-hand side of the video screen approximately 10 seconds after playback video content begins.

The lower 1/3 product suite was the most effective ad product across all advertiser categories. Remarkably, consumers also ranked the lower 1/3 experience to be the most likeable of the ad experiences. The 30-second pre-roll finished second, performing well in overall effectiveness and likeability and demonstrating ongoing consumer acceptance of pre-rolls even for short-form content.

The sideloader product suite, meanwhile, ranked third for the test in many metrics, even though it showed promise in certain areas, such as online ad awareness. Consumers specifically liked some the interactivity and movement of the unit.

Last November, Publicis' VivaKi brought together top online video suppliers -- AOL, Broadband Enterprises, CBS, Discovery, Hulu, Microsoft and Yahoo) -- along with a half dozen major marketers -- to come up with a superior video ad unit to the standard 30-second pre-roll ad unit.

Clearly a more comprehensive effort than "Project Inform," VivaKi's initiative is expected to yield some superior ad models by February 2010.