This week Netflix's announcement of pricing changes has created a stir in the industry. Netflix issued a seemingly reasonable explanation for the increase. That is what PR is for. However, one has to look at this move in the context of a simultaneously complicated playing field and dynamic industry environment within which Netflix is trying to both survive and shape the future.

You'd think that viral video fever would have run its course by now. But judging by the number of marketers who continue to ask their agencies to take their brand messaging and turn it into the next Evian "Roller Babies" or Dove "Evolution," it's clear the epidemic rages on. Please, people, take two aspirin and call me in the morning. I'll cite you the latest statistics on just how many of those online videos designed to go viral actually do. And then I'll let you in on some good news.

I've been reading a lot about how the digital video marketplace is (or is not) a component of the TV upfront. The truth is, while the digital video marketplace shouldn't be part of the TV upfront, there is absolutely a need and a role for digital video publishers and networks.

This past weekend I was visiting my folks on Cape Cod. While I was watching Comcast, an interactive commercial popped up, prompting me to click the remote for a free sample of shampoo. For all the discussions in the trade publications that ruminate over whether or not people will "click," I found the real-world experience so simple it was hard NOT to click.<

While most new media startups have seen valuations spike, video content remain under-valued, providing investors with a considerable safety net and compelling risk-reward ratio. But content owners are by and large not optimizing (let alone maximizing) their inventories.

I've recently been participating in a number of thought-provoking conversations on the future of digital video advertising. It's certainly a hot topic, and for good reason: eMarketer predicts that U.S. video ad spending online will reach $5.5 billion in 2014, up from $1.5 billion in 2010. But we're not there yet. With so much money on the line, a lot needs to happen before digital video can fulfill its potential and grow to the point where it's competing with the likes of TV and even digital display advertising for ad dollars. Everyone's placing their bets on what the future …

Stats abound; video's growth in e-commerce is undeniable. According to eMarketer's "Video for Ecommerce" report, 73% of US retailers featured video on product pages during Q4 2010, up from 55% during the same quarter in 2009. Last month, SundaySky shared in its Q1 2011 "State of Video in E-Commerce" report that the number of retailers who surpassed 1,000 videos on their websites increased by 10% from Q4 2010 to Q1 2011. Yet despite the traction, major hurdles face the growth of video in this unfolding segment. Among them: lack of leadership or willingness to find and exploit a defining video …

There's a great tradition in the city of Boston, where soon-to-be-brides battle each other for the wedding dress of their dreams at Filene's Basement's annual Running of the Brides. With more than 3,000 gowns available at a fraction of the cost, there are many engaged woman who clamor to take advantage of the tradition.The challenge is that while there are thousands of dresses, they're not all desirable, the right fit, within the shopper's price range, or worth being trampled over. Video ad exchanges are similar in this regard.

In a world where there are an incredible number of potential content opportunities, marketers have limited means to actually discover and evaluate them. In fact, among the content industry, it's all the rage to name your favorite "over-looked" Web series that a brand should be sponsoring. So why aren't we seeing more marketers make the smart move into original Web series? What's holding them back?

First, a confession. I am not an insider. As a journalist who covers media, my job is to remain as objective as possible. So please consider this and any future "insider" columns I may write in that context, because it is my job to be a little on the outside looking in. So let me tell you a few things I've observed since I began covering the video industry 30-odd years ago. Well, for one thing, we didn't call it the video industry back then, and I think a lot of the trouble we have defining this industry is the …