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Fox Unveils Exclusive 8-Day Authenticated Window For Online Shows: Major Ouch For Hulu
Assuming Fox, one of Hulu's owners, was hoping to sell the site for top dollar, then you have to wonder about the consequences of a new plan it has announced to create an exclusive 8-day online viewing window solely for paying
subscribers of authorized distributors. The new plan is a major endorsement of pay-TV operators' TV Everywhere approach and could be the first salvo by broadcast TV networks in curtailing free online access to their programs. DISH Network is the first pay-TV operator to sign up for the new Fox plan.
For Hulu, the move would appear to be a double whammy. A key part of Hulu.com's value proposition and its ability to drive huge traffic was offering next-day access to select programs from its parent broadcast networks. Under the new plan, users would lose coveted free next-day access (plus a week) unless they were authenticated. Less traffic of course means less advertising revenue.
Categories: Aggregators, Broadcasters
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Digital Radio and Video Advertising Mix As Slacker Signs Up With YuMe
Digital radio is all the rage these days, and now Slacker Radio, one of the key players, is looking to further monetize its audience through video advertising, by partnering with ad manager YuMe. Under the deal, being announced this morning, Slacker will use YuMe's ACE for Publishers (AFP) ad serving platform to insert ads across multiple devices. Slacker will sell its own ads and will also tap into YuMe's ad network.
Categories: Advertising, Music
Topics: Slacker Radio, YuMe
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Now We Know: Netflix Modeling Churn At Record 6.5 Million Subscribers in Q3 '11 Due to Effect of Pricing Change
A central question following Netflix's recent decision to separate DVD and streaming plans - driving some subscribers' rates up by 60% - was what effect it would have on churn. The hue and cry from outraged subscribers in the days after the decision was announced certainly indicated it would be meaningful. But it was anyone's best guess what it would actually be.
Now, with Netflix's Q3 '11 subscriber forecast included in its Q2 earnings release, plus a few assumptions I've made, it appears as though Netflix itself is modeling churn of approximately 6.5 million U.S. subscribers this quarter, a record for the company that could wipe out almost all of its quarterly gross subscriber additions in the U.S. (see below for a 2-year churn chart). The 6.5 million includes around 2.5-3 million incremental subscribers lost - presumably due to the price increase - over and above an expected churn of 3.5-4 million subscribers for the quarter.
Categories: Aggregators
Topics: Netflix
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Hulu Sale Process Has Become One Big Leak-a-thon
Late last week when Bloomberg reported that Apple is "considering making a bid" for Hulu, it inevitably ignited a series of follow-on articles and tweetsfrom other outlets, amplifying the perception of seriousness. How meaningful "considering making a bid" actually is nobody but the insiders really know. However, the Apple "news" underscored how the process of selling Hulu has become one big leak-a-thon, with bankers and others involved with the process continuously leaking selective nuggets of information to major media outlets as unnamed sources, no doubt with an eye to shaping how the sale process plays itself out.
In fact, even the decision to sell Hulu has never been officially acknowledged by Hulu itself; rather, the LA Times reported that bankers had been retained. That news was preceded by leaks that Yahoo had approached Hulu about an acquisition, that Hulu was considering selling itself, and that Fox, one of Hulu's owners and key content suppliers had renewed its license deal. In the month since these tidbits were released, there have been numerous other leaks, which I have listed below with links, noting the anonymous references each article cites (apologies to any I may have missed).
Categories: Aggregators, Broadcasters, Deals & Financings
Topics: Comcast, Disney, Hulu, News Corp.
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VideoNuze Report Podcast #105 - Coldwell Banker's On Location - July 22, 2011
Daisy Whitney and I are pleased to present the 105th edition of the VideoNuze Report podcast, for July 22, 2011.
In this week's podcast, Daisy and I broaden our focus beyond how media companies are using online video by discussing Coldwell Banker's "On Location" YouTube channel, which I wrote about earlier this week. The customized mapping unit in On Location allows home buyers to easily find and play videos about homes that meet their criteria as a starting point in their search process. Daisy notes that On Location is another example of how consumers are able to take better control and use online tools to educate themselves. Smart companies like Coldwell Banker are using online video to reinvent the way they do business and stay relevant in the changing digital world.
Click here to listen to the podcast (11 minutes, 56 seconds)
Click here for previous podcasts
The VideoNuze Report is available in iTunes...subscribe today!Categories: Brand Marketing, Podcasts
Topics: Coldwell Banker, Podcast, YouTube
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VINDICO Served 5 Billion Video Ads in Q2 '11, Estimated 40% Market Share
Video ad platform VINDICO posted a strong Q2 '11, serving 5 billion video ads, up from 1.8 billion in Q2 '10. When VINDICO compares this amount to the
approximately 13.7 billion video ads that comScore reported as delivered during Q2, VINDICO estimates it has close to 40% market share. The company reported that it is now working with 200 clients, a 400% increase over last year, which includes 21 of the top 50 TV advertisers.
Categories: Advertising
Topics: VINDICO
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SNL Kagan Forecasting 10% of U.S. Homes Will Cut the Cord by 2015
Researcher SNL Kagan is forecasting that 10% U.S. homes (12.1 million) will cut the cord on their pay-TV subscriptions by the end of 2015, substituting in over-the-top alternatives. At the end of 2011, 4% or 4.5 million homes will have done so. Still, Kagan sees pay-TV subscriptions actually increasing, though not at a rate fast enough to maintain current penetration levels (see yearly forecast after the break).
Kagan isn't providing any additional profile information on these cord-cutters, but as I've said before, I think the most vulnerable buckets are the "cord-nevers" (i.e. college grads and others who simply don't sign up for pay-TV service in the first place) and entertainment-only viewers who don't care about live sports that are only available on cable TV channels.
Categories: Cable TV Operators
Topics: SNL Kagan
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SupersonicAds CEO Sees Social Game Incented Video Model As the "New Prime Time"
Incented video views in social games are all the rage and yesterday, SupersonicAds, one of the many players in this space, raised a $4.2 million financing from Greylock (bringing its total to date to $6 million). I caught up with SupersonicAds CEO and co-founder Gil Shoham who sees this model as the "new prime time" as it marries the massive usage of social game use in Facebook and elsewhere with brands' desire to reach the audience.
For those not familiar, companies like SupersonicAds (and others such as Jun Group, Blue Noodle, WildTangent, Social Vibe, etc.) work with social game publishers and social networks to promote video ads that reward users with virtual currency for viewing (see Kellogg's example below). Gil sees the reward as the "hook" to get users watching, but the post-viewing engagement (e.g. "Likes," click-throughs, sign-ups, etc.) are based solely on the brand's appeal and the strength of the creative. Gil said 50-80% of users watch the full video, with an average 20% of those "Liking" the brand and 40% returning later to visit the brand's web site.
Categories: Advertising, Games, Social Media
Topics: Facebook, Greylock, SupersonicAds
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