Cutting the cable-cord? Maybe it's just going "off the grid", away from the traditional video programming grid. Some $1 billion is being spent on online media messaging this past year. But as Brian Monahan, executive vp and managing director of IPG Media Lab, in speaking at the OMMA Video event in San Francisco, says this pales in comparision to traditional TV for marketers. Last year some $18 billion was spent in the TV upfront -- that's a 20% year to year gain, and less than half the $40 billion that is annually spent on TV overall in a …

Consumers are choosing more advertiser video -- call this category social video. Brian Shin, founder and chief executive officer of Visible Measures, says this social video has grown three times to 2.7 billion viewers in 2010, up from 870 million views in 2009. "The big push is for brands to do content," he says. One of the biggest social video numbers occurred with last year's Old Spice viral commercial. "Consumers are choosing control. You are seeing a lot of different brands." To make Visible Measures top viral campaigns of the week these days, a campaign needs to …

How much money does a brand need to get involved with a web star? Eric Meyerson, group manager of video advertiser marketing for Google, says media exposure for a brand can be gotten inexpensively: "You can spend $100,000 that is going to get 3 million viewers," says Meyerson. "That's a $3 CPM [cost per thousand]. And you are getting so much more." Especially the value, he says, being incorporated -- in a branded entertainment way -- into the video content. And, more importantly, for some, the talent doesn't have to ever see brand executives. Concerning the deals …

Why do brands like webstars? Apparently because your close friend isn't available. "The most efficient way to buy a product is to get a friend to tell you to buy it," says Walter Sabo, chief executive officer of HitViews. But that's not always possible. So then you might to get someone you like, someone that you see on the Internet, say on a daily basis. That's where Kate Elliott came in - she of YouTube's "Katers17", who already had a big web following. Hitviews then put together Elliott with Mountain Dew. Goods news for Mountain Dew, Elliott …

Why shouldn't a music premiere get the same attention of a TV debut, a movie opening, or a video game launch.? That's the question Rio Caraeff, president and chief executive officer of VEVO, the big and relatively new music site, is asking. Careff says music shouldn't be a second class citizen behind other media launches -- especially that music is key part of a TV, movie, or video game launch. He says VEVO is the third biggest entertainment video site with some 60 million uniques, competing with the likes of Viacom, Time Warner, and CBS. "We are …

Digital video networks and video content sites should take heart that one of the key pieces of Comcast-NBC Universal deal was Hulu. To get approval from -- the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice -- Comcast had to relinquish its management input and board of directors seats at Hulu. All that means opportunity. "The NBC-Comcast deal will help [move the industry]," says Matt Wasserlauf, executive vp of video platform and services at Specific Media. Given the Comcast will have to sell its content to all comers, Wasserlauf says, "it will create inventory [to sell]."

Consolidation of video ad networks? It's here and happening. But it is good? A number of panelists at the OMMA Video event in San Francisco - especially those on in the ad network business - believe prices will climb, just like in other businesses -- all because ad networks buying each other creating bigger companies. "We are providing more value than ever before," says Jason Krebs, senior vp and chief media officer for Tremor Media. Cory Treffiletti, president and managing partner for Catalyst S+F, questioned whether the video ad network business has lessened the value of display …

Standardization is obviously a big topic for marketers and agencies trying to buy online video, but the lack of standards also presents big headaches for publishers, too. Speaking at MediaPost's OMMA Video conference in San Francisco on Wednesday, Kristine Shine, Chief Revenue Officer, PopSugar Media said, "I love the idea of standardizing (video ad) formats." She noted that big marketers like Kraft, Unilever, and P&G, "every single one of them measures things a little differently," which means that PopSugar first has to understand how each client is measuring and then customize every single campaign that runs on its …

The Internet is still all about short videos -- though the length of videos is getting longer. Not only that but somewhat surprisingly, Mike Dodge, president and general manager of Atomic Online, in speaking at the OMMA Video event in San Francisco, says men are watching longer videos on average than women. December 2010 comScore numbers show that men will watch videos with an average length of 4.9 minutes versus 3.6 minutes for women. This is up from 3.4 minutes for men and 2.9 minutes for women in April 2009. "This is not what we expected," he …

What's more important to brands contemplating an online video strategy: scale or content? According to ad agency execs speaking Wednesday at MediaPost's OMMA Video show in San Francisco, it's about striking the right balance. "Scale is obviously important, but it depends on the client and audience we're talking about," said Adam Seymour, senior vp and managing director of digital for Optimedia. "It's always a struggle to strike that balance," added Jeremy Lockhorn, vp of emerging media and video innovation of Razorfish. He noted that most big brand marketers have a need to be associated with a particular …