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5 Items of Interest for the Week of Sept. 6th
Though it was a short week due to the Labor Day holiday, there was no shortage of online video industry happenings this week. As I've been doing each of the last few Fridays, following are 5-6 noteworthy industry stories for your weekend reading pleasure.
Ooyala Raises $22 Million to Accelerate Global Expansion
Online video platform Ooyala's new $22 million round is a bright spot in what's been a pretty slow quarter for online video industry private financings. Ooyala's new funds will help the company grow in the Asia-Pacific region. Ooyala said it is serving 550 customers, double the level of a year ago.
Google TV to Roll Out World-Wide Next Year
Even though the first Google TV-enabled devices have yet to be deployed, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said this week that he envisions a global rollout next year. The connected device landscape is becoming more competitive for Google TV given the growing number of inexpensive connected device options.
Business Groups Question Net Neutrality Rules
Three pro-business trade groups urged the FCC to drop its net neutrality initiative, citing the "flourishing" broadband market and concerns that regulations will curtail new investments and hurt the economy. It seems like everyone has a different opinion about net neutrality, so the consensus needed to move regulation forward is still down the road.
ESPN, YouTube Link Up for Promo Campaign
This week ESPN and YouTube kicked off their "Your Highlight" campaign, enticing ESPN viewers to upload their own sports clips, with the best ones to be shown on SportsCenter. Then the best of the best will win a trip to ESPN's studios to watch a SportsCenter taping. It's a great promotional concept, using online video to further invest ESPN viewers in the brand. Whoever thought it up deserves a shout-out.
Life Without a TV Set? Not impossible
Another interesting data point to tuck into your back pocket: according to a 2010 Pew study, just 42% of Americans feel a TV set is a "necessity," down from 64% in 2006. Pew interprets this as a loss of status for the TV, as other devices like computers and phones have become video capable. The perception of convergence is taking root.
Categories: Broadband ISPs, Cable Networks, Deals & Financings, Devices, Regulation, UGC
Topics: ESPN, FCC, Google TV, Net Neutrality, Ooyala, Pew, YouTube
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5 News Items of Interest for the Week of Aug 30th
In a week dominated by Apple's new products, there actually was some other interesting online/mobile video industry news this week. Continuing VideoNuze's new Friday feature of highlighting 5-6 stories that we didn't cover this week, below are a collection of items for your weekend reading pleasure.
YouTube Ads Turn Videos Into Revenue
The 800-pound gorilla of the online video industry is reportedly closing in on profitability, based partly on ads running against user-uploaded copyrighted material. By detecting these uploads and offering the underlying rights owners the choice to have their video taken down or leave it up and generate revenue, many are choosing the latter. YouTube continues to evolve from its UGC roots.
Samsung, Toshiba Unveil Google-Based iPad Rivals
The battle line between Apple's "i" devices and those running Google's Android will ramp up, with mobile video set to follow, as Samsung and Toshiba plan to sell tablet computers in the coming months. Though the iPad is of to a strong start, it looks like it won't enjoy the same market dominance as the iPhone did as competitors jump into the tablet market quickly.
Google TV: Up to $300 Price Premium?
The components to enable Google TV could add $300 to the retail price of a television. If accurate this would put Google TV at a big competitive disadvantage given the trend toward lower-priced connected devices such as this week's $99 Apple TV and Roku's price cuts.
A Look Back: Lessons Learned From TV Everywhere a Year After Deployment
Marty Roberts, VP of Sales and Marketing for thePlatform, which has powered a number of TV Everywhere rollouts, offers insights based on the company's experience. Topics include authentication, content ingest, parental controls, discovery and content security. TV Everywhere is still in a nascent stage, but pay-TV providers should be following early lessons and moving quickly.
ShowUHow Scores $3 Million Series A Backing for Video Instruction Guides
A startup site that offers video instruction guides for various types of products that need to be assembled illustrates how valuable video can be for how-to video applications.
Categories: Advertising, Aggregators, Cable TV Operators, Deals & Financings, Devices, Startups
Topics: Apple, Google TV, Samsung, ShowUHow, thePlatform, Toshiba, YouTube
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Pondering the (Potential) Impact of Apple's New iTV Device
Once again it's the silly season, when rumors and pronouncements about still-shrouded-in-secrecy Apple products start flying around the Internet, often forecasting a future radically changed by another wave of Steve Jobs' magic wand. The latest Apple product in the speculative crosshairs has been dubbed "iTV," and was originally described back in May by Engadget as an "iPhone without a screen" (and a phone for that matter), that would bring the world of Apple's App Store to the big screen and would also be capable of playing some flavor of HD video. It would also carry a surprisingly low (for Apple products anyway) $99 price tag.
It's easy to see an iTV device being a volume success for Apple, though given its low price point, profit margins could be a different story. The groundwork for iTV's success has been laid by the massive success of Apple's App Store and iTunes, which would now would be inexpensively connected to the TV. The concept "apps on TV' is getting a lot of attention lately, with Samsung making a big push, and of course Google TV being primed to deliver apps from the Android Market.
Categories: Devices
Topics: ABC, Apple, Google TV, iTV, Netflix
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For Broadcast TV Networks, Google TV is Friend, Not Foe
Reading this morning's WSJ story, "Google TV Is a Tough Sell Among Would-Be Partners," you get the impression that broadcast TV networks are viewing Google TV as a potential disruptor of their business models. While the networks should take time to fully understand Google's new product, plus
assess additional work being asked of them (e.g. enhanced metadata) and how their programs will be incorporated in Google TV's UI, on the whole, broadcast TV networks should view Google TV as beneficial, not disruptive, to their digital distribution efforts.
Broadcast networks are right to be concerned about what effect viewing on any new digital device will have on their on-air business models. I've written often about my concern that the networks' web sites and Hulu's "ad-lite" approach was threatening to their on-air economics. However, more recently the networks (and likely Hulu) have been increasing their digital ad loads. ABC for one has said that digital delivery profitability is already on a par with "DVR economics" (accounting for ad-skipping by DVR households), and more ads will only further enhance digital's ROI. Certainly ABC's decision to make its programs available on the iPad is evidence that proper monetization, along with a coherent windowing approach, can yield incremental views and profits from distribution to new devices.
Categories: Broadcasters, Devices
Topics: ABC, CBS, FOX, Google TV, NBC
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Samsung Apps for Connected TVs - "Now there's a TV for that" Ad Campaign Begins
It looks like Samsung is ramping up promotion for its Samsung Apps store for connected TVs, using the tag line "Now there's a TV for that," a play on Apple's well-known "There's an app for that" slogan. I noticed a full back-page ad in the current issue of the New Yorker (see below) and promotion will no doubt be turning up elsewhere as well.
Categories: Devices
Topics: Google TV, Samsung, Sony
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VideoNuze Report Podcast #67 - July 9, 2010
Daisy Whitney and I are pleased to present the 67th edition of the VideoNuze Report podcast, for July 9, 2010.
This week Daisy and I talk about YouTube's new "Leanback" and mobile experiences, both of which were unveiled this past Wednesday. Daisy was at YouTube's headquarters and interviewed the company's mobile product manager Andrey Doronichev. Regarding Leanback, I wrote that it looks promising, as it offers viewers a passive, continuous way to experience a personalized version of YouTube, with all their new favorite video streamed back-to-back. It also makes YouTube a more important part of the Google TV value proposition. Listen in to learn more.
Click here to listen to the podcast (15 minutes, 1 second)
Click here for previous podcasts
The VideoNuze Report is available in iTunes...subscribe today!Categories: Devices, Mobile Video
Topics: Google TV
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thePlatform Unveils Support for Numerous Over-the-Top Devices
thePlatform is announcing this morning that it has integrated with numerous "over-the-top" consumer electronics devices, enabling its content customers
to more easily deliver online video to them. Devices cited are boxee, Roku, TiVo, Vudu (which includes connected TVs and Blu-ray players from LG, Mitsubishi, Samsung, Toshiba and Vizio), DivX devices, Syabas (popbox), FlingoTV and others to come (including Google TV when ready). I caught up with Marty Roberts, thePlatform's VP of Sales and Marketing yesterday to learn more.
Marty explained the impetus was thePlatform's content customers telling the company they want to generate more video views and have easy access to the range of OTT devices coming to market. While conceding that the universe of all these devices combined is still probably in the low single-digit millions, thePlatform and its content customers are betting on future growth. The move is significant as it underscores the mindshare that direct access to TVs via broadband and connected devices has gained in the content community.
Categories: Devices, Technology
Topics: Boxee, DivX, FlingoTV, Google TV, LG, Mitsubishi, Roku, Samsung, Syabas, thePlatform, TiVo, Toshiba and Vizio, VUDU
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With Leanback, YouTube Could be the First Big Beneficiary of Google TV
A couple of weeks ago at the Google I/O conference, YouTube provided a tantalizing glimpse of a new UI called "Leanback" which optimizes YouTube for viewing on TV.
With Leanback, YouTube videos can be navigated and consumed in more of a TV-like manner - more passively and for longer durations. Converting YouTube - the king of short online video clips - to a more conventional TV experience might seem like a surprising ambition for Google, but in the context of Google TV, it's actually quite strategic. Not only should it help Google TV gain acceptance, it could also position YouTube to be the first big beneficiary of Google TV.
Way back in March, 2008, in "YouTube: Over-the-Top's Best Friend," I argued that providing full, open Internet experiences was the best path for new OTT devices to succeed, and that YouTube would be their perfect partner. YouTube is so valuable for OTT devices like Google TV and others because it dominates the online video world, accounting for 40% of all video views every month for the past 2 years. For many users it is the only online video brand they know and by far the most heavily used.
Categories: Aggregators, Devices
Topics: Google, Google TV, Hulu, YouTube
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5 Reasons Why Google TV Looks Like a Winner
Google pulled the curtain back on Google TV ("GTV" for short) yesterday and the debate over whether it will be a game-changer or another in a long line of underwhelming web-TV approaches is already underway. I'm going to plant my stake firmly in the first category - I think GTV looks like a real winner and below I've articulated 5 good reasons why. I'm not saying it's a slam dunk, and there are still some unknowns (starting with price) which will have a huge influence on its adoption. But as I describe below, GTV looks like the right product at the right time.
(Btw, if you need more background on what GTV actually is, see my post from 2 months ago "Here's How Google TV Will Work" and Colin Dixon's guest post below, "Google TV Unites Web and TV in One Experience.")
1. Consumers Want Online Video on Their TVs
The touchstone of a successful new consumer product introduction is simple - does it solve a problem or fill a need? For GTV, the answer is an overwhelming "yes." Consumers want a simple, cost-effective solution for watching online video on their TVs. Millions have already availed themselves of alternative - and often sub-optimal - methods for doing so: connecting their laptops to their TVs, buying a Roku/TiVo/connected Blu-ray player, using their gaming console, etc. There is no question here of "do consumers want online video on their TVs?" They do and there's abundant research supporting the trend already (here, here, here for example). If you need more validation, just ask anyone who's using Netflix streaming.
Moving the online video experience to the TV is the next natural step in the evolution of this exciting new medium. When most online video was short clips and the experience was poor, watching on computers was ok. But now, with HD, full-screen, well-featured experiences gaining prominence alongside the advent of high-quality, long-form programming, the viewing experience wants to move to the living room and the wide-screen HDTV. And it's a virtuous circle - the more the online video experience moves to the living room, the more high-quality content will come online, further reinforcing the value of GTV.
2. It's the Full Internet and It's Open
A main point of skepticism regarding GTV is that other web-to-TV approaches haven't made it big, so why will GTV? It's a very fair question and I think there are 2 very significant differences between past approaches and GTV. The first is that GTV users get the full Internet, not just the bits and pieces that the device provider has made deals with, or those that have invested the time and money to integrate with the device. Fifteen years since the Internet went mainstream, people are conditioned to expect nothing less than full choice and selection. GTV is the first to recognize that a "no boundaries," fully-browsable experience is not a nice-to-have, it's a must-have. The second differentiator is that search is core to the GTV experience, while others have focused mainly on browse. Searching is THE way people are accustomed to finding what they want and the inability to do so simply in other devices and on-screen guides has been a real handicap. GTV blends online expectations into the TV experience; that will feel natural and meaningful for many.
As important as the full Internet is to consumers, GTV's openness is equally important to developers who will build the apps that will make GTV compelling. It's essential to remember the Internet's open standards and development tools have driven its success. With GTV, the full brunt of the Internet's openness is once and for all being brought to the TV, powered by advances in processors that would have been unimaginable until recently. Google's Android OS and Chrome browser help create the platform - at no charge - to make all this happen. Simply put, developers are going to love GTV and the fruit of their imagination is going to astound us.
3. For Content Providers, GTV Should be Love at First Sight
Of course, what good is a new device if there's no good content? This is a problem that all too often plagues new devices (some of you have no doubt heard me mention "Richmond's Law" - that you can't introduce a device AND the content/apps for it simultaneously and expect the device to succeed.) However, in GTV's case, since it's really just leveraging all the great content on the Internet, content shortage won't be a problem. For video providers large and small GTV offers the potential of massive new reach, usage, and importantly new revenue streams, whether from Google ads, their own ads or new paid models. Nothing is required of them, though if they want to optimize for GTV (as with YouTube's new "Lean Back" UI), they can do so very easily.
For cable TV networks in particular GTV is a big-time winner. It doesn't disrupt their traditional model (see reason #5 below for more on that), but does open up all kinds of new interactive content opportunities. Another set of winners are the independent providers that have already attracted audiences online, like blip.tv, Next New Networks and Revision3. Other winners include print publishers like the NY Times, WSJ, Sports Illustrated, etc, who have been avidly building out their video libraries. The independent and print guys were limited mainly to computer-based consumption, but with GTV they get equal on-TV footing for the first time with their cable TV network counterparts. This will make for an exciting new round of content innovation. Lastly, if past is precedent, we can expect Hulu to dig its head further into the sand and block GTV users. That's ok, users will just turn to ABC.com, Fox.com, etc. As GTV and more convergence plays emerge, Hulu's insistence on computer-based viewing only is a self-inflicted bullet to its head (which btw, could be to YouTube's benefit as it seeks to increase its premium content roster).
4. GTV is Part of a Compelling 3-Screen Experience
As important as GTV is to on-TV viewing, it's critical to see its place in the larger context of a 3-screen, converged world. Today "convergence" is more a slogan than anything. But as Google showed in its demos yesterday (flawed though they were by incongruous Bluetooth snafus), the interplay between mobile, online and TV is tantalizing. Seeing an Android smartphone act as a voice-activated GTV remote control is just the tip of the iceberg. Today we are in just the first inning of consumer expectations for how devices interact ("my contact list synchs to my iPhone - whoohoo!"), but increasingly, as the cloud gains more prominence, the consumer technology battle is going to gravitate to integrated 3-screen experiences.
In this respect, GTV must also be seen in the context of Google's epic battle with Apple. GTV is a rare instance of Google actually being ahead of Apple, rather than playing catch-up (as in smartphones, tablets, operating systems, etc.). For now at least, Apple doesn't have a TV of its own, giving Google an opportunity gain an early lead in how 3-screen experiences will work. GTV further exposes key weaknesses of Apple's tightly-controlled, vertically integrated model. While Apple has enjoyed a huge head-start with the iPhone and a smaller one with the iPad, developers are increasingly going to ask themselves whether developing for essentially one company (and to its particular, exacting demands) is better than returning their roots and comfort zone of developing for the open Internet and GTV. As I mentioned last week, Apple vs. Android is looking increasingly like Apple vs. Wintel, and we know how that story ended. While Apple is busy ranting against Flash, Google has been presented with a monster-sized PR opportunity for Android to be positioned as the open, neutral alternative.
5. It's Evolutionary, Not Revolutionary
Possibly the most remarkable thing about GTV is that rather than trying to disrupt the TV ecosystem, Google pragmatically incorporates it and tries to enhance its value. That Google chose to go this route rather than doing something revolutionary that would incent "cord-cutting" is almost miraculous given the company's nearly dogmatic approach to re-inventing everything it touches. While the cable/satellite/telco set-top box sitting alongside GTV may seem like a ridiculous hack to many, serving little purpose but to preserve the entrenched cable business model, for Google, this "friend, not foe" approach means genuine partnership discussions can ensue for Google with Multichannel Video Programming Distributors (MVPDs). That's key to GTV not relying on a risky, retail-only distribution model.
In my initial post on Google TV 2 months ago, I highlighted the fascinating negotiating dynamic about to unfold between Google and the MVPDs. Some will be frightened of Google and its potential Trojan horse incursion into the living room, while others will be compelled by the upside. One thing is for sure: yesterday's news that DISH's set-top box will be optimized for GTV means that GTV's new features are poised to become key messages in DISH's advertising. If you're an MVPD and you don't have an "Internet-on-TV" story you're going to be at a disadvantage. GTV adds value to MVPDs by enhancing both the TV experience and also driving more need for bandwidth on the ISP side. For all of these reasons, I think it's going to be very tempting for many MVPDs to engage with Google.
Wrap-up
OK, so those are my arguments why GTV looks like a winner. The main caveats to my enthusiasm are GTV's pricing and seeing GTV actually work (initially with the Logitech box and Sony products). These aren't trivial. If Logitech prices its companion box at $499, then despite the above arguments, GTV will be too expensive and not take off. But say it comes in at $249? Imagine a consumer contemplating buying it (with no monthly fee!) or an iPad, which is $500-800 (plus a $30 monthly fee!). GTV is a hand-down winner in that scenario.
There's a lot to be excited about with GTV, as a whole new chapter in online video's rise is set to begin.
What do you think? Post a comment now (no sign-in required).Categories: Devices
Topics: Apple, DISH, Google, Google TV, Logitech
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VideoNuze Report Podcast #62 - May 21, 2010
Daisy Whitney and I are pleased to present the 62nd edition of the VideoNuze Report podcast, for May 21, 2010.
In today's podcast Daisy and I share chat about what else - Google TV. Listen in to learn more, and also see other posts on the site for further analysis and information.
Click here to listen to the podcast (14 minutes, 25 seconds)
Click here for previous podcasts
The VideoNuze Report is available in iTunes...subscribe today!Categories: Podcasts, Technology
Topics: Google, Google TV, Podcast
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Google TV Unites Web and TV in One Experience
Colin Dixon, senior partner at industry research firm The Diffusion Group, which is a VideoNuze partner, has been attending the Google I/O developer's conference. Following his analysis of the WebM project yesterday, today he offer commentary on Google TV which was unveiled today. Back in late March I had posted on Google TV, based on some back-channel info I had received. I'll have more commentary as well.
Google TV Unites Web and TV in One Experience
by Colin Dixon
This morning, at Google I/O in San Francisco, Google announced a comprehensive push to bring the Internet to TV, an effort dubbed "Google TV." Working with initial partners Intel, Sony, and Logitech, Google is assembling an open ecosystem to deliver web content and applications directly to the TV. As well, rather than ignore traditional TV content, the effort seeks to integrate the Internet and TV into a single seamless experience.
Intel's CE4100 Atom-based SoC will serve as the processor engine for the service. The CE4100 is optimized for TV applications with sophisticated video handling and a 3D graphics engine built in. It also inherits the Atom processor's frugal power consumption capabilities and small footprint. The software stack that will run on the CE4100 is from Google. Android has been ported and optimized for the processor along with Google's Chrome browser. Since Android is the core operating system, many of the applications that have already been written for smartphones should run with little or no modification. Of course, the Android marketplace will also be available to add other applications to the experience.
Categories: Devices, Technology
Topics: Best Buy, DISH, Google, Google TV, Intel, Logitech, Sony
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Here's How Google TV Will Work - And What It Might Mean
Last week, the NY Times shared some details of "Google TV," the new set-top box Google is developing in partnership with Intel and Sony. The article provided a good outline, and now, based on additional information I've gathered, I'm able to provide new details on the box and also explain what it might mean.
The first and most important thing to know about Google TV is that it is not being positioned to induce users to "cut the cord" on their subscriptions to
existing multichannel video programming distributors' ("MVPDs" like cable, satellite or telco) services. Or at least that's Google's initial positioning; whether it's genuine or really just a Trojan Horse game plan is another whole matter. For now anyway, Google is taking a "friend of the industry" approach, telling MVPDs that it's briefing that it is looking to complement their businesses by bringing the full Internet to the TV (this follows the same convergence theme as the new Kylo browser).
Google is contemplating an entirely novel strategy for its set-top box, seeking to insert it alongside the existing MVPD's set-top box by daisy chaining them together via HDMI connections. In other words, the MVPD's set-top's HDMI output would be connected to the Google TV set-top's HDMI input, and then its HDMI output would be connected to the TV. The authorized TV channels would still be delivered, but Google TV would collect data from the MVPD's set-top and introduce an entirely new UI for users to control their TV experience, to include searching and browsing channels. It would also add a host of new interactive web-type capabilities around the content.
Since the Google TV box would have a full browser and connect to the Internet via the user's WiFi or wired access, it would also bring all of the rest of the Internet to the TV as well, including the full breadth of online video (yes, that would mean one more thing for Hulu to block). My understanding is that on the whole, the Google TV experience is extremely impressive and well conceived. In short, it will get the attention of any MVPD executive who has a look at it and will certainly get them to thinking about how able - or unable - they are to deliver a similar experience themselves to their subscribers.
A key reason that Google is planning to insert its box this way is because it believes that in order to deliver a compelling Internet experience on TV requires a new web-based, and open platform. For Google that of course means Android, which it is vigorously proliferating on smartphones as well. Throw in Google's Chrome browser that it is promoting for online usage and you get a glimpse of how Google's multi-platform strategy comes together. While Sony would be making the box, you have to believe it will have Google branding on it, a first for the company in the living room too.
Categories: Cable TV Operators, Devices, Satellite, Telcos
Topics: Comcast, DISH Network, Google, Google TV, Intel, Sony
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