Digital Broadcasting Group made a splash two years ago with its "Style Series" for Diet Coke featuring celebrity interviews and performances distributed online, on mobile phones and even on
electronic billboards in Times Square. Now the Web video company is kicking off its third season of original branded programming with a new slate of shows along with the latest edition of "Style Series."
The planned lineup encompasses scripted, documentary, lifestyle and reality programs, with the timing and length of
each show to be determined with input from sponsors that DBG will try to attract through a series of "upfront" events it scheduled for advertisers in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York starting April
22 in L.A.
The slate of more than a half-dozen shows includes:
"5 First Days" -- A series documenting the first day of school for five different families of varying size, age and backgrounds
from the perspective of the students and the moms.
"Ex Appeal" -- A scripted series revolving around a character who can't seem to get over her ex even though she dumped him. It will feature
appearances by Jason Biggs, Julie Benz and Krysten Ritter.
"Family vs. Chef" -- A competition-style cooking show shot before a studio audience pitting one family's recipe against a celebrity
chef's version of the same dish.
"How to Date Your Husband" - Oprah.com relationship expert Andrea Syrtash offers married women advice on maintaining or rekindling romance in their marriage.
"Under the Arch" - A hybrid "scripted-reality" series that follows the complex lives of several NYU students.
DBG will distribute the shows across the 2,600 sites in its video network including
Yahoo.com, CNBC.com and People.com. The company runs both pre-roll video ads and longer-form content in editorial placements and ad units. In addition to Diet Coke, DBG has created branded
entertainment for clients including Wal-Mart, Kimberly Clark, Lionsgate and the U.S. Air Force.
DBG CEO Chris Young said in a recent interview that about 70% of the company's business is on the
video distributing side and 30% in original production. Becoming a Hulu-like video hub isn't part of the plan. "We want to be a virtual network" crossing all platforms, said Young.