• by July 1, 2005

America Online is getting ready for its biggest Webcast ever when it streams tomorrow's Live 8 multi-city concert event. The Live 8 event, which seeks to raise awareness about and funds to combat global poverty, comes 20 years after the original Live Aid concert, which raised funds for famine victims in Africa.

AOL will stream the real-time feeds of the Live 8 concerts in Berlin, London, Paris, Philadelphia, Rome, and Toronto. Between the Webcasts, TV broadcasts on major networks, and radio play, it is estimated that the concerts will be available to nearly 5.5 billion people, or 85 percent of the world's population.

"This monumental live broadcast is without doubt the largest global live transmission in history... and, importantly, will be the first to truly embrace the powerful broadband Internet," Kevin Wall, executive producer of Live 8, told Reuters.

MTV and VH1 will offer nearly eight hours of live coverage tomorrow, while ABC will provide two hours of highlights. Of course, AOL will offer the most complete experience - music fans can enjoy each of the concerts from the comfort of their PC screens and access each of the six concerts live. Talk about the wonders of technology. You have to sink your teeth into this. It should be truly phenomenal and we're looking forward to it.

While the Minute was invited to Philly, we had other plans, so we will be especially pleased to access the event online, tune into highlights, blogs, and behind-the-scenes content. Live 8 represents the linchpin of AOL's new free content strategy. Basically, anyone with a Web connection can access the event for free via AOL.com. Yes, free.

Advertisers including Nokia, Volvo, and AOL itself, will get plenty of attention for being a part of Live 8. Volvo is set to broadcast six 30-second TV spots during ABC's broadcast of the concerts. Vonage is a sponsor of Premiere Radio Networks' broadcast of Live 8 and will get ad placement on MTV as well. Reuters partnered with AOL to direct fans back and forth from AOLMusic.com and Reuters.com. The Reuters sign in New York's Times Square will also air live clips from the event.