Babelgum Targets U.S. Audience With Flash Player

BablebumLaunched in 2007 by Italian billionaire Silvio Scaglia, Babelgum was among the wave of Web video startups that charged online to challenge YouTube's hegemony. Because of its European pedigree and use of peer-to-peer technology, the company was often lumped in with its better-known video rival -- Joost.

Taking a page more recently from Joost, the London-based company ditched its P2P software in favor of a browser-based player and is now focused on building a following among urban hipsters here with an array of edgy niche content.

It has also introduced a free iPhone app in the U.S. and Europe and enlisted Stolichnaya Vodka as its first sponsor since launching the Flash-based version of its video service, which doesn't require users to download any software.

"Making sure consumers could get to our video content in the easiest possible way while still maintaining global rights management (of content) was something that was very important to us," said Michael Rosen, executive vice president and chief revenue officer at Babelgum, which opened a sales and marketing office in New York a year ago.

With a cleaner, more user-friendly design and a lineup featuring independent programming, Babelgum wants to claim the ground between viral video hubs and network TV-focused sites such as Hulu. "We're trying to focus on the third part of the ecosystem, which is professionally produced content around very specific passions and created by experts in their fields," said Rosen.

During much of the last two years, the company has worked to refine its strategy and programming and is only now coming out of its beta period, he noted.

To that end, Babelgum offers five content channels: film, music, comedy, "Our Earth," with green-themed content, and "Metropolis," focused on urban culture and trends. The video catalog ranges from "Bananaz," a 90-minute documentary about the virtual band Gorillas to live concerts from indeed rock favorites like Franz Ferdinand and Kaiser Chiefs to the satirical Web series "Goodnight Burbank: Hollywood Report."

Among the experts assigned to each area is Karol Martesko, a co-founder of Filmmaker Magazine and indieWire.com, who oversees the film section.

The site also provides more mainstream content from partners including PBS, National Geographic and Sony BMG as well as original productions through its in-house studio including "Extinction Sucks," a series about wildlife protection.

The idea is that this carefully crafted video buffet will attract affluent, progressive types who in turn will draw advertisers seeking to reach them. Stolichnaya has an exclusive sponsorship of Babelgum's music channel for a limited time but will also advertise more widely on the site, including the home page, during the rest of the year.

With an audience of less than 200,000 globally and 117,000 in the U.S. as of March, according to comScore, Babelgum will have to count on quality over quantity in appealing to advertisers. "Sometimes you have to sacrifice reach to get passion," said Rosen. He added that since the company switched to a Flash-based video player at the end of March, its global traffic had already swelled to 800,000.

Even so, it still has a long way to go to catch up with Joost's global audience of 2 million (1.2 million in the U.S.). And compared to another "pro-tail" video competitor such as Metacafe, with about 47 million visitors worldwide earlier this year, Babelgum's audience looks like a blip.

Nevertheless, Rosen said the company is hoping to entice upscale advertisers with integrated ad programs that will align brands with site content. It can also offer offline ad opportunities through events such as its Online Film Festival, chaired by Spike Lee and culminating with an awards ceremony Monday night in connection with the Tribeca Film Festival in New York.

Babelgum has also extended its brand of Web TV to mobile screens via its iPhone app and through devices from companies such as Nokia and wireless operators including Vodafone. A promotional push via social media properties and search marketing have led to the Babelgum app being downloaded 500,000 times to date, according to Rosen.

The app, however, only gets an average rating of two out of five stars in Apple's App store, with a number of the 211 reviews posted complaining about poor design and a lack of full-length shows.

The company says it's always seeking to improve its products including the iPhone app. With Hulu expected to launch its own iPhone app soon, Babelgum may soon face tough competition on that front, as well.

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