Video is the most important element of any heavy content strategy, and for good reason: when done right, one video can convey more information and emotion than a photo or a blog post. Studies have shown that videos keep users on a web page an average of two minutes longer and can increase conversion rates by up to 80%.

There are so many haters of real-time marketing out there. Mike Proulx wrote about it as a predatory weed, Carree Syrek wants us to avoid using the term or pay a dollar, and there is at least one entire blog devoted to snarky comments on brand RTM efforts. Theirs, and other anti-RTM arguments, center around the fact that some marketers are tripping all over themselves to try and match the headline grabbing social content of brands like Tide, GE, and Red Bull -and that this blind race results in a variety of brand failures. I don't understand the intensity of …

We live in a choice-based world, as digital and mobile platforms have given people the power to choose when, where and how they consume content. With this in mind, brands and agencies must realize this simple fact: Giving consumers the power to choose to watch online ads - or not - will significantly boost engagement rates and earned media while delivering more accurate real-time data on target customers and consumer behavior.

A recent IHS study found that about 73% of consumers aren't interested in buying a smart TV in the next year, with purchase intent checking in at a low 7%. But if set makers can better promote features such as Internet TV, on-demand programming and onlune interactivity, they'll have a better shot at driving sales, IHS said. After all, advertisers are keen on the medium and are spending money there.

Eighteen months ago, I found myself sitting in Madison Square Park. I'd just stepped out of an investor pitch. It had gone well, and the investor wanted to invest in my company. The catch was that he wanted us to shift our approach fairly significantly -- changing everything from our content approach (moving from largely horizontal to vertical, focusing on the beauty, fashion and style category) to focusing on aggregation, to hiring a salesforce instead of letting YouTube handle sales. I had a lot to think about.

News last week that Intel is contemplating exiting its Intel Media OTT project via a sale to Verizon. As we wrote back in July, Intel's TV efforts have been facing long odds for a while now. If the reports of the Verizon deal are true, Intel deserves a great deal of credit for facing an uncomfortable reality about the TV business. The degree of difficulty (not to mention expense) in lining up the content to make the service fly -- and doing so all on its own -- is simply too high. For Intel, it's time to fold the cards …

Music has always been an integral part of film, initially performed live and later as a fully integrated synchronized element. Opportunities for musicians and copyright holders to generate revenue from the use of their musical works in film, television and advertising have broadly kept pace with the growth of the industry. While robust, the opportunities were always limited by the finite amount of content that made economic sense to produce and exhibit, duplicate, and/or broadcast. In the age of YouTube, the synchronized music licensing opportunities are now virtually endless.