• by Laurie Sullivan , February 11, 2008

Jenny McCarthy joins Leah Remini and Chelsea Handler this year for the second season of the online comedy series "In the Motherhood," sponsored by Sprint, Unilever's Suave brand and MindShare Entertainment. The women portray the hectic, yet always humorous, lives of three mom friends.

While McCarthy, Remini, and Handler role-play in front of cameras, the real stars of the contest and Webisodes are the everyday moms from across the country whose real-life stories are written and turned into scripted short-form comedy series. Consumers who write winning submissions this year will get the chance to see the filming of their stories and meet the actresses.

Daytime television talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres created buzz last year by calling Remini to talk about "In the Motherhood" plots on air. "Ellen also showed parts of episodes on her show," says Nancy Benovitz, a Unilever spokeswoman for the Suave brand. "We're working to build an emotional connection with moms, and believe consumer-generated content does this very well for us," says Piyush Jain, Suave senior brand manager. "We know 'In the Motherhood' has really resonated with moms, with results from the first year surpassing our expectations.

"In the first year there were 3,000 submissions, 5.5 million video views, and 60,000 votes cast by consumers. Suave also completed research with moms who spent time on the Web site. The results confirmed that moms' purchase intent for the brand increased and that moms felt Suave really understood their lives."

The first of five episodes for the second season go online Wednesday--just in time for Valentines Day, followed by a call for new scripts scheduled for production this year. Last year, the series received 5.5 million views.

The appetite for online videos has not slowed. Market research firm comScore released numbers Friday revealing that U.S. Internet users watched more than 10 billion videos online in December. Google sites ranked No. 1, taking 32.6% share--or 3.3 billion videos viewed, up 1.3 share points, sequentially. Microsoft sites ranked No. 5, with 1.8% market share, or 180 million videos viewed.

The contest begins this year with professional Hollywood screenwriters creating the story lines for each Webisode. Moms from across the country can write and submit real-life stories at inthemotherhood.com. Those who belong to the community, along with an advisory committee, vote for their favorite submissions.

Special features on the site now enable members to connect directly with each other. They also gain access to recipes, and arts and crafts projects that viewers can do with their children. The gaming section, a popular destination last year, has also been expanded.

Aside from watching "In the Motherhood" online, Sprint Nextel customers also can view the Webisodes on the carrier's handsets via the Sprint Exclusive Entertainment network. "It's not just about putting our brand on a billboard," says Aaron Radelet, Sprint spokesperson. "We want to create an interactive experience to engage consumers, so they keep coming back."

Radelet says "In the Motherhood" Webisodes are part of a bigger initiative to deliver video to consumers on cellular phones.