VideoNuze Posts

TV4 Entertainment is a well-pedigreed LA-based startup positioning itself as a creator and super-distributor of multiple online niche channels. Today the company is announcing a deal with Cinebx, whose library contains 10,000+ titles will power a minimum of 6 co-owned online channels, beginning with one focused on classic sports.

Recently I caught up Jon Cody, founder and CEO of TV4, to learn more about the company's strategy. Jon was previously SVP, Digital for Fox Digital Media and launch GM of Hulu, so he knows his way around programming and digital distribution very well, as does the rest of the founding team.

continue reading

Score another win for the importance of authenticity in video: newly released data from EXPO shows that in a test program when consumer generated video product reviews were placed on the relevant product pages in a major e-commerce site, they drove a 30% increase in site revenue for those products.

The test covered 8 different household and beauty products from Reckitt Benckiser Group such as Lysol, Airwick, Clearasil which were being sold on an undisposed retailer's commerce site. Sales for the products during the test period of June, 2013 were compared to June, 2012, adjusting for any that were discontinued or newly launched. The product review videos were supplied by consumer's using EXPO's platform.

continue reading on VideoNuze iQ

Don't wait any longer - early bird discounted tickets for the next VideoSchmooze: Online Video Leadership Forum on Dec. 3rd, in NYC are available for $95 apiece. This is a fabulous value including the full morning program, networking, continental breakfast, and perhaps most importantly - a chance to win the drawing for an iPad, the complete "Breaking Bad" series on Blu-ray/UltraViolet and several Chromecasts, all generously provided by Unicorn Media.  Bring your colleagues and save even more with 5-pack tickets for $430 and 10-packs for $760.

I'm fired up for this VideoSchmooze because we'll be diving deeply into so many of the hottest industry topics that VideoNuze covers each day such as the rise of OTT video, the threat of cord-cutting, TV Everywhere, mobile video's explosion, changing viewership behaviors, online video advertising, devices and much more. Keeping things grounded, for the first time we'll have 2 short research presentations, from FreeWheel and Videology, with each premiering brand-new market data.  

The lead sponsors for this 10th VideoSchmooze are FreeWheel, Synacor, thePlatform and Undertone, with branding sponsors Clearleap, Unicorn Media and VideoHub. If you need to be up-to-date on what's really going on in video, and want a premier networking opportunity, make sure VideoSchmooze is on your calendar for  Dec. 3rd!

LEARN MORE AND REGISTER NOW!

When your flagship product's name becomes far better known than your company's name, it's likely time for a corporate identity makeover. That's the logic behind LongTail Video's official name change today to "JW Player" as company CEO Dave Otten told me last week. JW Player is the company's hugely successful video player, now used by over 2 million sites. The company has also changed the name of its online video platform, Bits on the Run, to "JW Platform."

continue reading

When we last left Aereo in its battles with the broadcast TV networks, our trusty (or not so trusty - it's complicated) over-the-top service was in the midst of a maelstrom of litigation and new market rollouts.  The dynamic has only gotten more heated, highlighted by the broadcasters' petition for relief from the U.S. Supreme Court filed just over a week ago.

For all of the attention of the broadcasters petition to the Court, the finish line here is far from in sight. The Court is not obligated to take this case, and in fact grants less than 2% of all 'cert' petitions.  The broadcasters are seeking resolution of what they say is a 'split' among Circuit Courts, which is certainly a well-established basis for the Court to step in. Yet to date no other appellate court has ruled in opposition to the 2d Circuit - only other lower district courts.  So while I would fully expect the Court to eventually take this case, the timing may not be ripe in their eyes. So we may well be back to sorting through the continuing morass for some time.  So what is happening in the hinterlands?

continue reading

Video-on-demand and pay-per-view provider iN DEMAND has chosen software platform Clearleap to help it move to an all IP terrestrial distribution network for multi-screen delivery. Under the deal, Clearleap will handle 4,000 hours of HD and SD movies per month that iN DEMAND distributes to its cable operator affiliates for their transactional, subscription and free VOD offerings.

Clearleap's CEO Braxton Jarratt told me  that iN DEMAND will be able to now limit its use of satellite delivery mainly for live events. Clearleap's management platform is layered on top of iN DEMAND's IP infrastructure, giving the company a single user interface to manage all of its content for quick delivery in multiple formats to cable operators. This is critical to support VOD viewing by subscribers on TVs and other connected devices.

continue reading

A new academic research paper on video advertising effectiveness, written in partnership with Akamai, shows among other things that mid-roll video ads have the highest average completion rate at 96.8%, followed by pre-rolls with 74.3% and post-rolls at 44.7%.

Even when controlling for other factors like an ad's length or the video itself, mid-rolls continued to have the highest completion rate. The data underscores the value of an already engaged viewer. The new research aligns with prior research from FreeWheel which also showed mid-rolls with the highest completion rates of 97% for 15-second ads and 91% for 30-second ads.

continue reading on VideoNuze iQ

Teads.tv, a provider of innovative video ad units, has raised $5.2 million in a Series A round by Partech Venture and Elaia Partners. As I wrote several months ago, Teads' big differentiator is that it enables premium text-based web pages to carry video ads as well. So in other words, rather than a premium publisher having to create expensive video in order to tap into the booming demand for online video ads, it can monetize existing web pages this way. the video ads only become visible when a pre-determined about of content has been consumed. Teads ads can also run in slideshows, music, video and social media.

continue reading