Americans have a long history of paying for convenience over quality. Sometimes it makes sense (i.e. plastic utensils or paper napkins) and sometimes it doesn't (i.e. quick serve restaurants or .mp3 files). In general, it is hard to predict the quality/convenience ratio for average Americans. But let's try.

As the medium of television continues to be disassembled before our eyes, recognition of video as the true asset of trade has started to take hold across the advertising landscape....

Thomas Edison liked to demonstrate the phonograph by allowing people to speak into the machine and then playing the recording back for them. However, the technology was outside almost everyone's conceptual understanding. Up to that point in history, the only thing that could mimic the sound of one's voice was a ventriloquist, so people thought it had to be a trick....

After having prayed for broadband for years, now that it's here, I sometimes regret it. Almost every new video project launched on the Web is awful.

A few weeks ago I was having a typical advanced-media conversation with a C-level executive. During the conversation, she made the following declarative statement: "My six-year-old grandson does not know the difference between the television screen, the computer screen or the 9" diagonal screen in the back of his parent's SUV. To him it's all the same!"

It's not quite the four Cs of diamond-buying, but whether you approach online video from the interactive side or the traditional side, here are a few characteristics to help maximize the effectiveness of in-stream video campaigns.

With the buzz about all things video, it's hard to ignore the hyper-focus on pre-roll spots....

Everyone wants their 15 minutes of fame, and deservedly so. Based on America's love affair with reality ("me") TV, one could argue it's become more a right than a privilege.

Many companies are making critical errors when venturing into new rich media trends. Everyone wants to keep up with the Joneses (who have long since gone wireless), but for the moment, allow me to step in and outline the following dos and don'ts around emerging online media trends.

Here's a novel concept: Take a 30-second spot originally shot for television and place it in a rich media ad unit. Wait, you've heard that one before? So have I, over and over again.