• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, August 20, 2009

Seeking as large an audience as possible, Lifetime Digital has decided to stream full episodes of "Project Runway" online. The show's sixth season -- but its first on Lifetime Television -- is set to debut Thursday night. This marks the first time that the show's full-length episodes will be available online.

Available on Lifetime On Demand, the full episodes will add to the more than 500 exclusive video clips, including behind-the-scenes footage, to be rolled out throughout the season. "Our goal is to satisfy the most passionate fans of the show," said Dan Suratt, EVP of digital media and business development at Lifetime Networks.

Critics and fans alike are watching closely to see how Lifetime handles Project Runway, which has flourished for five seasons on NBC Universal's Bravo. Lifetime -- jointly owned by Hearst and Disney -- only recently won the rights to promote and broadcast the reality show after its producer, Weinstein Co., and NBC Universal settled a lawsuit over contract rights.

Pulling out all the stops, Lifetime Digital has created a highly interactive destination site for the show, including community features, discussion forums, groups, member profiles, and photo "face-offs."

A "Project Runway" Buzz Room custom application was designed to aggregate Twitter messages and Facebook public posts around popular tags and keywords. Providing fans with a centralized digital location to tap into the show's "buzz," the Buzz Room will also feature posts from show designers and models, and designers from previous seasons.

Previous "Project Runway" designers Nick Verreos, Andrae Gonzalo and Chris March will each provide weekly blog updates on the "Project Runway" show site following each episode.

Their blogs will join a lineup that includes weekly updates from hosts Nina Garcia and Michael Kors, and the official "Project Runway" and "Models of the Runway" blogs, written and updated by Lifetime Digital producers. Designed as an open platform, site visitors can access the Buzz Room with their Facebook Connect or Twitter log-ins, and have the option of simultaneously surfacing their posts in the room on their Twitter or Facebook pages. In addition, an interactive photo gallery will now allow fans to view multiple design photos and zoom in on images for a closer look.