by Steve Smith on Nov 30, 1:45 PM
The jury is still out on Hulu Plus and even on Apple's 99-cent episode rentals, but a new study by Ipsos finds that the younger demo is serious enough about on-demand viewing of TV online that they are willing to pay for it. In a speculative what-if survey of 18-to-34-year olds, Ipsos found that in a world of limited free options for viewing TV after its original airing, 51% of this group was interested in fee-based models from Hulu, Netflix or iTunes. Ipsos OTX MediaCT created a scenario where free alternatives were not available and TV was available via Netflix …
by Steve Smith on Nov 29, 1:43 PM
Only 1% of consumers report they have canceled subscription TV/Video services because they are accessing content instead on the Internet. According to the 2010 edition of the Frank N. Magid & Associates update on cross platform video use and consumer attitudes, cord cutting is likely a myth. Only 2.5% of U.S. media consumers use the Internet exclusively for their content. And only 3% of consumers are even considering leaving TV subscriptions for other video sources. Instead, Magid is finding that the people who use alternative video sources like Web, mobile and streaming media boxes are also spending the most on …
by Steve Smith on Nov 24, 1:05 PM
Readers of this and my other scribblings here at Mediapost may know that I am a hopeless mediaholic -- have been from an early age. I am the son of a former ad agency creative director who kept his drawing board in my bedroom. An appreciation for anything media related was burned into my soul. In fact, for me as a child, Thanksgiving was wholly associated with video. In the New York market in the '60s local TV stations like WPIX devoted Thanksgiving Day and the day after (Who knew from 'Black Friday' back then?) to cartoons for kids and …
by Steve Smith on Nov 23, 3:33 PM
Some rants are so big they take two blog posts to handle. See yesterday's post for the warm up. Such is my experience with mobile TV. And I do mean "experience." I literally have had access to dedicated mobile video services and live mobile TV from the days they were first offered. For months I kept with me the first Verizon VCast 3G phones back when they had an antenna. I did the same with the first iterations of Sprint TV on 3G (again VOD) and the Qualcomm FloTV units from Verizon and AT&T. I have even had review …
by Steve Smith on Nov 22, 2:57 PM
Don't get me started. When news hit last week that a consortium of broadcasters planned to equip 20 major markets to service mobile digital TV, commentators reiterated that old dream of "TV in your hand." The Mobile Content Venture claims it will cover almost 40% of the U.S. population with free-to-consumer digital channels to their phones by the end of 2011. As someone who has tested and covered the jagged, mostly unsuccessful roll-out of live mobile TV service for several years, who has had this capability on a number of review phones I have covered around for months at a …
by Steve Smith on Nov 19, 12:05 PM
It seemed to take forever for 60 Minutes to get around to deploying much of a Web strategy, so it is heartening to see CBS ride the crest of a breaking trend to release a branded iPad app for the Sunday night institution. 60 Minutes often feels longer in the tooth than Andy Rooney is in eyebrows, and part of that creakiness gets transferred to the app. In this case, however, that may not be an altogether bad thing. According to the promotion, this is "the first prime time news magazine to have its own standalone application for the hand-held …
by Steve Smith on Nov 18, 3:19 PM
We all know video advertising has considerable brand impact online relative to other digital ad units, but we still don't know much about what that richer media experience actually moved someone to do. Well, there are post-campaign branding effects studies of course that can parse out the kinds of lifts in brand reputation or purchase intent a campaign had on users, but those metrics come well after most campaigns end. Jivox is introducing one ad model and analytics tool today that tries to address the issue.
by Steve Smith on Nov 17, 1:17 PM
File this one under 'What's Next? Their Own Web Browser?" Amazon.com announced this week the opening of Amazon Studios, a development house where filmmakers and writers can submit scripts and test films to get awards, feedback and consideration for Hollywood development deals. The little film project is working with a fund of $2.7 million that can be awarded to submissions made through 2011. The studio has a first-look deal with Warner Bros. Pictures for the projects deemed worthy of advancement.
by Steve Smith on Nov 16, 2:22 PM
Meredith and Matt have new competition for those AM eyeballs this morning from Wallstrip alumnus Lindsay Campbell. As part of its planned explosion of programmed video content AOL issued its first episode of AOL Daybreak. The two-minute video show purports to be a "light-hearted" round-up of headlines. Because there isn't enough perky and light in morning programming.
by Steve Smith on Nov 15, 12:12 PM
It bears remembering that online video is not just a guy thing ... not by a long shot. Have you seen the number of video views that make-up and beauty tips get on YouTube? What celebrity news clips can do to traffic stats at any lifestyle or women's magazine site? While video hubs such as Break.com and Metacafe chase that 18-34-year-old male demo with entertainment, gaming and babes, the fairer gender is snacking on video just as voraciously. To wit: the site SheKnows claims to have generated 18.72 million video views in September to become one of the leading video …