Fox/NBCU Add 'Fuel' to New Web Venture

Mike Shields

MAY 30, 2007 -

News Corporation and NBC Universal continue to expand the programming
roster for their upcoming joint Web video venture. The companies
announced five new content partners on Wednesday, including the
auto-enthusiast-aimed Fuel TV and Speed, as well as Oxygen, Sundance
Channel and TV Guide Broadband.

Each new partner will distribute a selection of short- and long-form
video content both on the soon-to-launch video hub, which is meant to
serve as the networks' answer to YouTube. In addition, these networks'
clips will be syndicated across the joint venture's network of
affiliate sites, which will include AOL, MSN, Yahoo, MySpace and CNET.

Among the shows that will be made available to millions of Web users
are Oxygen's The Bad Girls Club, Sundance's The Green and Big Ideas
for a Small Planet and TV Guide Network's America's Next Producer,
along with its various interview shows from major Hollywood awards
presentations.

Previously, News Corp. and NBC Universal had written similar content
deals with AOL, MSN, MySpace, Yahoo, CNET and Comcast's cable
networks: E!, Style, G4, Versus and the Golf Channel.

Charter advertisers that have committed to the service include Cadbury
Schweppes, Cisco, Esurance, Intel and General Motors.

In addition to its third-party content providers, News Corp. and NBC
Uni will seed the new site with programming from their own broadcast
and cable networks, including popular prime-time fare like Fox's 24
and NBC's The Office.

The two networks said that the new stand-alone video site, along with
the corresponding network, will go live sometime in late summer. The
new venture will have offices in New York and Los Angeles. A name and
a permanent management team is expected to be unveiled shortly.

--additional reporting by Anthony Crupi

Two Companies Patent Ad Technology for Online Video

Two Companies Patent Ad Technology for Online Video

Content type plays stronger
role in ad technology

Get Interactive and Adjustables have just patented separate
technologies in getting ads embedded into online video, reports
MediaPost.

Get Interactive has created a button that parks alongside a video and
takes users to specific scenes, where "Get Shop" icons provide more
info on specific products.

In testing, 70 percent of users rolled over for more info and 12
percent clicked-through to the product's retail site. The company is
talking with mobile providers, which would allow users to buy items on
mobile video and have charges sent to their mobile bill.

Meanwhile San Franscico-based Adjustables developed a technology that
shows logos, banners, picture-in-picture, or text, based on a user's
specific interests or what media they're using to access content.

Google Seeks Volunteers for Ad Collabo Tool

Google recently launched its Ad Creation Marketplace, a place that
connects advertisers with video creators, reports Search Engine
Journal.

The marketplace is accessible through the AdWords interface.
Advertisers can set a budget and list services needed, then find
third-party vendors who can create the ad. Google is seeking
volunteers to test the system.

The Ad Creation Marketplace is meant to remove barriers to entry for
companies who want to video ads but lack the resources to do it
themselves.

Joost Boost Worth $45 Million

Joost Boost Worth $45 Million
by Gavin O'Malley, Friday, May 11, 2007 6:00 AM ET
WEB TV STARTUP JOOST HAS received another vote of confidence in the
form of $45 million in investment from five prominent media and
venture capital companies.

They include CBS Corp. and Viacom Inc., Silicon Valley venture capital
firm Sequoia Capital, Europe's Index Ventures and the Li Ka Shing
Foundation, founded by the chairman of Asian conglomerate Hutchison
Whampoa Ltd.

Joost's new investors are not saying how large their stakes are, or
how much they paid for them.

Joost, founded by the same entrepreneurs--Niklas Zennstrom and Janus
Friis--who brought the world Skype and Kazaa, last week announced a
lineup of 32 major brand advertisers to support its content.

Aided by a year-long partnership with Interpublic Group's Emerging
Media Lab, brand advertisers include Microsoft, Intel, Motorola, and
Sony Electronics. Separate deals have been made with Hewlett-Packard,
Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble and Nike.

Unlike video-sharing sites like YouTube, which are dominated by short
clips, Joost's mission is to popularize long-form, high-quality,
ad-supported content.

The startup has clearly convinced major media companies that it will
deliver on these promises.

"We've carefully selected these investors from a variety of interested
parties," said Friis. They "bring unique assets to Joost that will
enable us to significantly accelerate growth and development of the
Company."

Joost "allows content owners to reach audiences of any size at any
time," said Roelof Botha, a partner at Sequoia.

The company made headlines recently when it signed Viacom as a content
partner, shortly after the media titan filed suit against Google for
alleged copyright infringement by YouTube.

Since then, Joost has signed a number of additional content partners,
including Warner Music, National Geographic, Turner Broadcasting, The
Cartoon Network's Adult Swim and CNN--along with programming from
Hasbro, the NHL, Sports Illustrated and Sony Pictures Television.

Vmix/DirecTV Partner to Put Web Videos on TV

Video site Vmix has signed a deal with DirecTV that will enable them
to put selected web videos on TV, reports Red Herring.

Users can submit videos to a section of the Vmix website, where they
will be considered for use on DirecTV's show The Fizz. This is an
effort by DirecTV to move beyond the established user-submission
community. It's also an opportunity for Vmix to position itself as a
powerful distribution outlet in the media world.

DirecTV currently pays select creators up to $200 for submissions but
it is not clear whether Vmix content creators will be eligible for the
same compensation.

Google Furthers TV Push With Dish Deal

Google Furthers TV Push With Dish Deal
EchoStar Brand to Run Ads in Auctioned Spots, Provide Viewing Data

By KEVIN J. DELANEY
April 3, 2007; Page B4

Google Inc. is furthering its ambitions to move beyond online
advertising with a multiyear contract to sell television commercials
that will appear through satellite-TV provider EchoStar Communications
Corp.

Under an arrangement to be announced today, Google will sell TV ad
spots through an online auction system, with advertisers bidding the
amount they are willing to pay per thousand households that view each
commercial. Google will send the commercials of the winning bidders to
EchoStar, which will then insert them in an unspecified number of
daily blocks in the TV programming it delivers to the roughly 13
million households that subscribe to its Dish service.

The deal expands Google's push into the $54 billion U.S. market for TV
advertising, amid similar efforts by the Internet company to move into
radio and newspaper advertising. The EchoStar agreement builds on an
existing Google test of serving up TV ads to Concord, Calif.,
subscribers of cable provider Astound Broadband, a unit of
WaveDivision Holdings LLC.

The EchoStar partnership provides national distribution for TV
commercials brokered by Google, and the Mountain View, Calif.,
Internet company says it intends to sign similar deals with cable
providers, TV channels and local broadcast stations to sell ads for
them.

TV networks and some advertisers and media buyers have in the past
proved reluctant to join Internet-based efforts to change how TV ads
are sold, at least partly out of concern that their business would
become commoditized. But advertising executives briefed by Google on
its plans welcomed the announcement, saying it could improve the
market for cable and satellite-TV ads and nonpremium ad purchases.
Some added, however, that Google's auction system wouldn't replace the
way the premium spots, such as those for prime-time broadcast
television, are sold.

"I don't think anybody is thinking this is going to change large
national broadcast," says David Kenny, chief executive of Publicis
Groupe's Digitas digital unit. "This is something that brings a lot of
value to the more fragmented end of television."

Google and EchoStar declined to discuss financial details of their
arrangement, which they are testing and expect to have fully launched
within the next few months. But Google typically provides a minimum
revenue guarantee to partners, lessening the partners' financial risk,
and keeps a commission on ad sales.

Mike Kelly, EchoStar's executive vice president of advertising, said
Google would account for only a small percentage of the ads EchoStar
has to sell.

Advertisers who use Google's Web-based system for buying commercial
spots have the option of selecting specific TV networks, times of day
and regions where the ads will be viewed. Eventually Google intends to
allow advertisers to target specific groups of viewers, based on
information about the viewer demographics for each channel.

Google plans to tell advertisers how many TV set-top boxes were tuned
in to each commercial they ran, and charge based only on the number of
set-top boxes where the commercial played. It additionally will
provide advertisers data about whether users changed the channel
during the commercial.

Google is relying on information collected from set-top boxes by
operators such as EchoStar, which it says does not permit it to
identify any specific subscribers. At least initially, Google is not
matching commercials with the content of TV programs or showing ads to
specific users based on previous viewing habits or other personal
information. The Internet company says concern for user privacy will
be a factor in any future efforts to target TV advertising more
specifically.

For EchoStar, of Englewood, Colo., the deal could potentially boost ad
revenue if Google's auction system generates more demand for
commercial spots. EchoStar satellite TV subscribers won't see anything
different under the arrangement, as the commercials brokered by Google
will fill normal ad spots.

Similar efforts are under way elsewhere. Online auctioneer eBay Inc.,
with a group of large advertisers, is setting up an Internet-based
system for buying and selling TV ads. Closely held Spot Runner Inc.
has built an online system for advertisers to buy TV spots, and caters
to small- and medium-size advertisers who might not have bought TV
commercials before.

"It's way too early to tell whether Google will ultimately be able to
find the same success in traditional media it has enjoyed online,"
says industry analyst Greg Sterling of Sterling Market Intelligence.

Google interested in DoubleClick purchase: report

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Google Inc. (Nasdaq:GOOG - news) has emerged
along with Microsoft Corp. (Nasdaq:MSFT - news) as a contender to buy
DoubleClick Inc., presenting competition that stands to increase the
final sale price of the online-advertising company, people familiar
with the situation said in The Wall Street Journal.
ADVERTISEMENT

Microsoft has appeared less likely to win the bidding as the potential
price for the company surpassed $2 billion, people familiar with the
situation said in the Journal.

Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq:YHOO - news) and Time Warner Inc.'s (NYSE:TWX -
news) AOL online unit also have talked to DoubleClick -- which is
majority-owned by San Francisco private-equity firm Hellman & Friedman
-- though it is unclear whether AOL is still in the race, these people
said in the Journal.

DoubleClick is using investment bank Morgan Stanley to help explore
its options, including a possible stock market listing, the Journal
reported last week. Hellman & Freidman has reportedly set a price tag
of at least $2 billion for the advertising company.

Such a price tag could amount to a hefty return for the private equity
firm, which took DoubleClick private in mid-2005 in a deal worth $1.1
billion.

Representatives from Google were not immediately available for comment.

Advertising.com to provide ad management services to NBC Universal, News Corp.

New York—Advertising.com, a wholly owned subsidiary of AOL, said
Friday that it will be the ad management service partner for NBC
Universal and News Corp.

AOL recently announced its alliance with the two media companies to
launch an Internet video distribution network offering full-length
programming, movies and clips from a dozen networks and two major film
studios. Under the agreement, Advertising.com will provide
comprehensive display and video advertising management as well as
fulfillment for the new video site and the dedicated video player
embedded on that site, as well as to its distribution partners.

TV Guide to Launch Video Search Engine

Media staple TV Guide will soon launch its own search engine that will
guide people to online video across the web, reports the Associated
Press.
Instead of becoming a video channel of its own along the YouTube
model, the engine will simply crawl the internet and index the video
it finds. Only 60 sites will be crawled, all from TV networks or other
major companies such as Google and others. TV Guide will monetize the
search function by selling ads within results and licensing out the
tool.

Far from being a "right now" play, TV Guide has its eyes on the
future, when TV and the internet will be integrated and it can help
people find video content regardless of distribution platform.

The company hopes results will be more relevant to the user based on
its cross-referencing an item's metadata against its huge database of
programming information. Users will be allowed to save videos to an
offline application.

NBC Pitches Cross-Media Engagement Measurement

With its programming appearing on several platforms, NBC wants to
provide advertisers with numbers of a show's total impact, reports
MediaPost.
NBC isn't satisfied with just selling advertising on its namesake
network. Instead, it wants to show advertisers how many people are
watching it there, on other NBC Universal networks, online, and via
iTunes. Such numbers could, of course, push a show's ratings up
considerably.

Last year NBC cut a deal with Toyota that included an "engagement"
measurement, and this cross-media emphasis could go beyond even that.
Multiple views of a single episode would be particularly important
since those would provide multiple ad exposure.

Overlay CTR, on Forbes.com

Videoegg of San Francisco also offers a clickable overlay ad option
called a "ticker," as well as an "endcap," which provides a number of
clickable options at the end of a video clip. The options could lead
to a video ad, other video content or even a game. Videoegg's ads cost
about $10 to reach a thousand people, while conventional pre-roll ads
cost $20 to $50 to reach the same number.

Omnicom Group (nyse: OMC - news - people ) subsidiary Organic used
Videoegg's technology for a promotion last year for Fox TV's The O.C.
that ran on Videoegg's ad network and portal sites including Time
Warner's (nyse: TWX - news - people ) AOL, Viacom's MTV and News
Corp.'s (nyse: NWS - news - people ) MySpace.

If a viewer clicked on a ticker at the bottom of the screen, the video
they were watching was automatically paused and a new screen opened
where the viewer could watch a promo for The O.C. If the viewer didn't
click on the ad, the endcap at the end of the clip offered them the
option of watching a preview for an upcoming episode.

Fox netted a 5% click-through rate from the endcap and 6% to 8% for
the overlay, according to Rick Corteville, Organic's executive
director of media. That represented a far better audience response
than the 0.2% click-through rates that eMarketer says is typical of
static banner ads.

Advertising.com: 80% More Publishers Veer to Video Ads in ‘07

With its 2007 online publisher survey, Advertising.com, Inc. has
revealed that 80% more publishers support video advertising formats
this year versus last. The survey addressed the future of online
advertising revenue growth, advertiser objectives and advertising
capabilities for publishers.

Furthermore, 100% of websites that support streaming content are
monetizing it with video advertising. Advertising.com's predictions
for 2007 include publishers adding more original streaming content to
their websites, and making a move away from syndicated or
user-generated content.

David Jacobs, senior VP of publisher services for Advertising.com,
said, "Video has a lot of value for advertisers. It carries great
emotional impact like TV, yet it can be measured and can't be skipped.
That value means publishers can command higher CPMs – hence the rise
of streaming content."

The report also affirms the widely-observed trend of traditional
advertisers shifting more spending towards online, with the focus
resting simultaneously on branding and direct response objectives.

Dominance of CPM pricing models, the focus on larger ad sizes, and the
use of more sophisticated advertising formats such as video and rich
media were other findings within the report directly related to both
branding and direct response campaigns. Notably, direct response
advertising, including text links and CPC/CPA pricing, is expected to
decline in 2007.

Tremor Adds Former IAB Chief To Board, Opens SF Office

Tremor Adds Former IAB Chief To Board, Opens SF Office

GREG STUART, FORMER CEO AND president of the Interactive Advertising
Bureau, has racked up another board post. He's joining Tremor Media's
board of advisors, the rich media and video ad network said. Tremor
said Stuart will offer strategic guidance and form an advisory board
for the company.

Stuart, who left the IAB late last year, already sits on the board of
Rapt., Inc., a profitability management company, and Allyes, a Chinese
company. He also serves on the advisory boards of Adify Corp., an ad
network; Fraudwall; Veoh; ZenZui; and Vizu, in addition to the
non-profits SEMPO and IAB Mexico.

"Greg is involved in every aspect of the industry. He knows everyone,
and is one of the guys who truly gets it," said Randy Kilgore, chief
revenue officer of Tremor Media.

"Greg's experience, industry knowledge and contacts will be tremendous
assets for us as we continue to grow," said Jason Glickman, CEO,
Tremor Media.

Separately, Tremor said it's expanding its West Coast presence by
opening a San Francisco office to help promote the launch of its
Ad-inStream ad-serving product.

In conjunction with the new office opening, the company named Matthew
Rochios as director of sales-West Coast, and Gregory McAllister as
regional sales manager-Western Region.

Rochios, formerly a sales manager at MySpace.com, will manage all
sales and marketing activities for Tremor on the West Coast.
McAllister, who worked in client acquisitions at TrafficBuyer Digital,
is charged with increasing awareness of Tremor's video and rich media
ad services by working with agencies, marketers, and brand managers.

NBC & MobiTV

NBC Universal will start selling episodes of "Heroes," "The Office,"
"Monk," "Battlestar Galactica" and other full-length TV shows to
wireless users that subscribe to MobiTV, the companies said this
morning.

But despite the popularity of those shows, this offer doesn't seem
likely to move the bar on mobile TV adoption.

For one thing, the shows seem expensive, going for a minimum of $1.99
per episode, which will buy users only a 24-hour viewing period.
That's the same as most shows go for on Apple, but iTunes downloaders
own those programs -- meaning they're not limited to a 24-hour viewing
window. With Apple's iPhone due to hit the market soon, NBC's plans to
offer 24-hour rentals of its shows isn't likely to lure many early
adopters -- which also make up the MobiTV subscriber base.

Too, the 24-hour limit might prove impractical, as many mobile
batteries run down after several hours; if users spend one of them
watching "Monk," that's less time available for talking.

The deal also includes some free add-ons for MobiTV subscribers,
including ad-supported versions of some shows, like "Friday Night
Lights," "Shear Genius" and "Work Out." But those offerings in
themselves don't seem likely to drive MobiTV adoption.

Ex-Disney Chief Building Video Kingdom Online

Michael Eisner, the man who revived a struggling Walt Disney company
in 1984 and prompted the development of hit animated features like
Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, and The Lion King, is now trying his
hand at online video.

Eisner's investment firm, the Tornante Company, has formed a new
studio called Vuguru to produce video features for the Web. Vuguru's
first internet show, a mystery serial entitled Prom Queen, will debut
on April 2, 2007. One 90-second episode will be released each day for
80 days on Vuguru.com, Ellegirl.com, the site of one of the show's
sponsors, and promqueen.tv, a site dedicated to the show which will
also include forums and blogs. Episodes will also be distributed on
video-sharing sites YouTube and Veoh. Eisner is a Veoh board member.

"There's a new distribution platform that's going to be ubiquitous,
and that's clearly broadband," said Eisner in an interview first
published in USA Today. He said that sharing sites like YouTube
captured the "short-term" audience, but that "winning the marathon
will be professionally produced, emotionally driven story
content"–like Prom Queen.

The show will feature pre- and post-roll ads with product placements
from Fiji Water, Pom Wonderful juices and Teleflora florists.
According to USA Today, it's difficult to find sponsors because
produced online video is such a new medium and there are not yet any
audience numbers to report.

"We're making up our own rules as we go along," admits Eisner. He
hopes this new venture will help people see the business value of
professionally produced online entertainment.