Cynopsis: DIGITAL
10/01/12

Good morning. It’s Monday, October 1, 2012, and this is your first early morning digital briefing.

Atul Patel (no relation) is the CEO and Founder of OneScreen, a company that is pretty much trying to do it all in terms of providing technology for almost everyone involved in the digital video space. Here he discusses the role his company plays in the entire ecosystem, as well as where the digital video space currently is and where it needs to go.

I would describe your company as an all-in-one digital video company. How do you help all of the stakeholders within the space?

Our mission is to provide audiences with greater access to content when, where, and how they want. And the only way to do this is to successfully partner with the three key stakeholders in this industry, which include producers, publishers, and advertisers. Similar to how the term “social graph” describes how people are connected with each other, OneScreen’s media graph defines how these key stakeholders are connected with each other in the network, powered by our solutions.

What we do is provide each of these stakeholders with tools for their respective roles in the digital video economy, allowing them to connect with each other and their audience. So for producers it’s content and rights management, encoding, and so forth. For publishers, we offer playout tools such as players, applications, advertising optimization, and payment management. And we provide advertisers with media buying capabilities, audience segmentation tools, and data. OneScreen also enables aggregators that represent producers, networks that represent publishers, and agencies that represent advertisers. Our inclusive platform allows them to connect and seamlessly transact with each other through a powered Media Graph.

How would you describe where the digital video space currently is, in terms of both content and advertising? Where is there room for growth?

It is no surprise that the dominant players in the content and advertising ecosystem still spend much of their energy and earn much of their profit from traditional media. But, we believe this is a burgeoning time for new business models. And those models will move upstream to traditional channels. In fact, our technology platform started with short-form digital content and is now tackling long-form content.

The industry is at a turning point when it comes to the evolution and convergence of digital video content. We are obviously very bullish about the industry’s direction. Where we see inefficiencies are in the connections between companies, the systems used by these companies, and the mixed roles these companies are establishing for themselves.

If I’m a web publisher, the same content may be available to purchase or use through many platforms at different prices and with different features. If I am a website with an automotive fan base, I can embed YouTube content, sign up for a web syndication platform like AOL/5min, Grab Networks, Scripps/Real Gravity, or I can call automotive content companies who will send me a hard drive with a one-off agreement. If I am a new service provider, such as Barnes & Nobles, I now have to call hundreds of content companies to attempt to build my library. The same issue happens on the other ends with content producers and advertisers, as well. It’s difficult to discover and navigate these numerous relationships and weigh your options.

It becomes even more difficult when each relationship requires a different set of integrations. Imagine if every time people wanted to share personal pictures, they had to use the dozens of systems that each of their friends are using. Instead, you likely use Facebook or Instagram to share with everyone simultaneously. In digital video, there needs to be a significant consolidation of the systems being used for similar efficiency.

Aside a few large companies that do both production and distribution, such as NBCUniversal, for the most part, companies such as Endemol and Freemantle Media produce content while the broadcasters and networks distribute it. But, in a rapidly democratizing market, producers want to publish and publishers want to produce. Add in the agencies that are beginning to create “branded entertainment,” and you have a stew of companies each trying to do what the other does. While this is definitely a long-term opportunity, businesses should first focus on taking their specialty into new areas, and evolving incrementally.

With the digital video space becoming increasingly fragmented by the introduction of different platforms, services, and devices, how does that change how content producers can offer and monetize exclusive content?

The fragmentation and the amount of new participants in the industry is actually a significant opportunity. Content producers and aggregators can and should offer their content everywhere, but managing all the relationships and integrations involved makes it difficult. There is no centralized system that companies can use. Integration is a major problem, but OneScreen has been working on this obstacle for some time. We are partnering with companies like Dow Jones to create and push their WSJ Live apps out to as many platforms and devices as possible with ad support. These include Samsung Smart TV, Kindle, Boxee, Yahoo Connected Devices, Philips/Sharp, and more. We also partner with companies like TNA Wrestling to push their content to as many native storefronts on similar platforms and devices such as the Xbox 360, PS3, and iTunes.

With the right tools, issues around windowing, re-syndication, and integration can be easier, something we’re committed to providing. Content producers can not only syndicate to more companies, they can also consider publishing their own direct-to-consumer applications. It is no surprise that HBO and Epix have begun direct-to-consumer plays because of this app revolution.

That said, producers and aggregators should foster as many relationships as possible and use data to work out the right terms, pricing, windowing, and other parameters. And, of course, partner with the right technology partners to make this happen.

You had some interesting thoughts about the relationships between content producers and publishers during the big Viacom/DirecTV face-off. Your quote was, when it comes to digital, “there are too many cooks in the kitchen and no head chef.” Who/what would be a head chef?

As the industry continues to become more democratized, disputes like these will become even more common. They might not be limited to the big cable companies and channels, but between producers and distributors/publishers of all sizes. This is our bigger concern, and also our opportunity as a company.

Just like buying and selling of stocks, commodities, and currencies all happen on regulated exchanges, I believe that there can be systems in place between producers and publishers to streamline these disputes and the resolutions that come from them. Every relationship is a one-to-one at the moment, but if the relationships were centralized on a common platform, it could protect the consumers a lot better than they are now, especially with the complexity of choices in the market. Barnes & Nobles is launching a new video service, but we envision a day where every retailer does the same. Now imagine the disputes and negotiations that might arise from that!

CNN plans to make its live television coverage of the upcoming presidential debates available for everyone on CNN.com and its apps for the iPhone and iPad. From 7pm to midnight ET on October 3, 11, 16, and 22, any user with an internet or mobile connection can watch CNN programming live, without needing to authenticate. Users watching on CNN.com will also be able to capture video clips on the fly, and share them on Facebook and Twitter. Once the clips have been shared on those social networks, users will also be able to create a custom URL or embed code to publish them on blogs, websites, or distribute them on LinkedIn, Google+, and via email. The online live streams will be available on the CNN Debate page, and will offer users other features such as a 768 x 432 HD player, the ability to “start-over” from the beginning whenever they want, a live blog, a “Social Buzz” meter, and on-demand videos.

AMC is offering the season premiere of The Walking Dead for free online to Dish subscribers. This continues the network’s practice of making the first episode of new seasons of its original series available online for the satellite provider’s customers. At 9pm ET/6pm PT on October 14, the night the zombie thriller returns to the air, Dish subscribers will be able to watch the episode via a custom page on AMCtv.com. Register here for access. Season three of The Walking Dead is split into two eight-hour haves, with the second block set to begin in February 2013. Additional content such as episode sneak peeks, bonus scenes, production diary interviews with the cast and crew, and other behind-the-scenes videos will be available to all users on AMCtv.com throughout the season.

The CW is making the series premiere of hospital drama Emily Owen, MD, available online for a couple of weeks prior to its television debut. Starting today and through October 14, the pilot will be available on The CW’s website and mobile apps, as well as on YouTube, Hulu, Facebook, Twitter, and as a free download on iTunes. Starring Mamie Gummer as a surgical intern who apparently learns that there isn’t much of a difference between working at a hospital and going through high school, the series is set to arrive on television on October 16 at 9pm.

Disney Interactive‘s short-form news show Daily Shot with Ali Wenthworth, which is available every morning on Yahoo and Babble, is also now available via a native app for the iPhone and iPad. The app allows users to watch that day’s episode as well as previous ones, and then share them via email, Facebook, and Twitter. Since it premiered in February 2012, Disney has produced over 170 episodes of the show. Per comScore’s August MediaBuilder data, the series is generating over 2.5 million unique visitors and 3.5 million visits per month.

Alloy Digital has launched a new YouTube channel called SMOSH Games, which combines the resources of the company’s existing YouTube channels, SMOSH and ClevverGames, for a brand new offering targeted to the 12-24 demo. Within the first 24 hours of its launch, the channel surpassed 250,000 subscribers and 1.1 million total video views. SMOSH games will offer video content covering the gaming industry, including latest news, exclusive trailers and reviews, and weekly gamer debates and walk-throughs. It pulls in video series from Clevver, combining them with SMOSH programming like Gametime with SMOSH, a weekly show featuring Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox playing new games as well as other titles selected by viewers. “The new platform aligns perfectly with our growth strategy for building categories that hit the key passion points of our core teen and young adult viewers,” said Barry Blumberg, EVP, Alloy Digital, and President of SMOSH.

Video Streaming Network (VSN) has integrated Civolution’s NexGuard — Pre-Release for Online Media Delivery product into its VSNIPTRANSFER solution to allow studios, producers, and distributors to better track and protect their digital video content. VSNIPTRANSFER is designed to speed up the distribution of media content over IP networks and the web at a high, broadcast-level quality. This new integration has the goal of making it easier for VSNIPTRANSFER users to trace leaked content back to the original recipient regardless of transcoding processes. It does this through imperceptible forensic watermarks, which users can embed on to online video downloads and streams on a per-transaction basis.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

Jun Group, an online company that specializes in opt-in/rewards-based video ads, has released findings from a study of 7.7 million user-initiated video ad views between May and August 2012. According to the report, the difference in engagement rates between repurposed TV spots and ads created specifically for the web is negligible. Repurposed TV ads witnessed an engagement rate of 3.65%, while made-for-web video ads saw an engagement rate of 3.27%, suggesting to Jun Group that advertiser relevancy is more important than the type of ad content. Other findings include:

• When it comes to opt-in ads, length doesn’t have much of an impact on completion rates (CR). The CR was 87% for 2+ minute ads and 98% for 30-second ads.
• Additionally, Jun Group says 70% of all views came from videos that were over a minute long.
• While visiting the advertiser’s Facebook page is still the most popular post-view activity (31%), Jun Group has seen this choice drop by 9% over the last year. Conversely, visits to the advertiser’s website rose by over 20%.

Google was the top web brand in the US in August, with some 176 million unique visitors according to data from Nielsen. Next on the monthly rankings was Facebook.com, which had 158 million unique visitors in the US. However, while visitors on average spent 1 hour and 51 minutes on Google over the entire month, they spent an average of over 6 hours and 53 minutes on Facebook. In fact, the average time-spent on Facebook over the entire month also surpassed that of the other Google behemoth, YouTube. Visitors of the top video site spent a total of 1 hour and 54 minutes over the entire month. Rounding out the top five in terms of unique audience were Yahoo (142.7 million), YouTube (132.7 million), and MSN/WindowsLive/Bing (131.3 million).

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Cliptamatic is a new app launched by GorillaSpot Media that gives users the ability to discover short video clips from popular entertainment and news sources and then share them on Facebook and/or within their own Cliptamatic network. Within the app, users can follow other users, subscribe to specific content channels, and comment on videos shared by others. Available for free on all iOS devices, Clipamatic is initially offering content from the Big Ten Network (including game highlights from each team’s weekly football games); comedy producer Latham Entertainment (The Kings of Comedy); and election coverage from various news sources. GorillaSpot says film and television content will be added soon, along with the ability to share via Twitter and other social networks.

Paramount Pictures is teaming up with the Ptch iOS app to allow fans of the Paranormal Activity horror franchise to create videos inspired by the films. Users of the app can now add filters, sounds, clips, and images from all four Paranormal Activity movies into their own videos and then share them across the usual suspects (Facebook, Twitter, email). The studio is also running a contest that gives a lucky few the chance to see Paranormal Activity 4 in their local theater prior to its official release, which is scheduled for October 19. Winners will be chosen from a variety of categories, including most popular video, scariest, most realistic, and most tense. Ptch is a free multimedia app from DearmWorks Animation that allows users to create 60-second mash-ups using photos, videos, and music from their devices and social feeds.

Style Coalition, an “influencer platform” with a reach of 4 million monthly uniques, has appointed Twyla Huang-DiSimone to the position of VP/Marketing and Strategic Development. Most recently, Huang-DiSimone was the Sales Development Director at Glam Media, based out of that company’s Silicon Valley headquarters. For her new position, she will relocate to NY, where she will work on further developing the company’s existing partnership with Hearst Digital Media as well as building multichannel social media programs and ad campaigns for brand advertisers. Huang-DiSimone will be responsible for the platform’s roster of clients, which include Starbucks, Magnum, Macy’s, Unilever, and Microsoft. Style Coalition recently launched an online video channel to expand the reach of its bloggers and publishers through video.

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NOMINATE THE MOST INTRIGUING PEOPLE IN MEDIA…

Event/Submission Questions: Jenn Sredzinski
Advertising/Sponsorship information: Mike Farina.

IDG Consumer & SMB is launching a new website today called TechHive. Focused on tech enthusiasts and the 18-34 demographic, the new site offers a mix of the latest news, product reviews, and how-to content covering the tech and gadget industry. The site features a product database with information on devices and gadgets that number in the hundreds, as well as a “compare” feature so users can check out the specs on multiple products before deciding which one they want to buy. TechHive, as well as the redesigned MacWorld and PCWorld sites, which are also owned and operated by IDG Consumer & SMB, are built on a new publishing platform that’s based on HTML5, responsive design, and in-house apps. This allows all three sites to offer a user experience that is optimized to the device the visitor is using to access them.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

Later – Sahil
Sahil Patel, Associate Editor for Cynopsis Digital
10.01.12

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