A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE FROM VIDEOLOGY

Cynopsis: DIGITAL
02.19.13

Good morning. It’s Tuesday, February 19, 2013, and this is your first early morning digital briefing.

Intel’s decision to enter the pay-TV market has received a serious boost from CBS President and CEO, Leslie Moonves. During a Q4 earnings call, Moonves said CBS is currently negotiating a content deal with Intel for the chipmaker’s upcoming OTT set-top box and video service.

Independent YouTube network Fullscreen has inked a licensing deal with the Universal Music Publishing Group (UMPG) to allow Fullscreen’s roster of YouTube stars to legally cover music from UMPG artists. In return, Fullscreen will compensate the original songwriter by splitting ad revenue made from the video. The Fullscreen Artist Mix (FAM) network is currently comprised of more than 700 musicians on YouTube.
Why this matters: It’s impossible to eliminate the user-generated content (UGC) side of YouTube. But by partnering with some of the most prolific independent creators on YouTube — those within the Fullscreen network — UMPG is able to make some money off of the UGC content.

LeBron James’ production company, Spring Hill Productions, and digital studio Believe Entertainment Group (BE) have announced the second season of the animated series The LeBrons and will shift to using computer-generated, three-dimensional animation. Co-executive produced by LeBron James, Maverick Carter, and BE’s Co-Founders Dan Goodman and William H. Masterson III, season two will have the US Army as a lead partner and will be available exclusively via Xbox Live and MSN. The US Army’s partnership with the show includes the introduction of a character called Bryce, who will embody some of the Army’s “core values of leadership, education, and training.” The first season of the animated series generated more than 50 million total views across the web.

An update to Vizio’s Co-Star Google TV set-top box: New apps for the M-Go and Vudu video rental and streaming services, as well as full access to Amazon Instant Video. Also look for YouTube pairing, which allows users to browse and queue up YouTube videos on their TV via the YouTube app on Android smartphones and tablets.

Simulmedia has raised an additional $5 million in funding from existing investors Avalon Ventures, Time Warner Investments, and Union Square Ventures. “We will use the new capital to continue building out our audience data targeting platform,” said Dave Morgan, Founder and CEO of Simulmedia. “Key areas of expansion will be to provide managed data services to partners (media owners) and clients (agencies and advertisers) and also integrate viewing data from emerging devices [like] alternative set-top boxes and connected TVs.” To date, Simulmedia has raised $32 million across five rounds.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

SF-based global digital publishing company Alphabird has acquired Volt Media, an independent premium video ad and tech company from Australia. With the acquisition, Alphabird says it will now be able to offer web and mobile publishers in the Asia-Pacific region a full suite of ad products for audience acquisition and development, data management, and content monetization. Volt Media’s content partners include Dailymotion and Blip. The company also boasts “preferred video partner” status with top Australian agencies including OMD, Cadreon, and Ikon.

Web browser provider Opera Software has acquired Silicon Valley-based mobile video optimization and cloud solutions company Skyfire Labs for $155 million. Skyfire says its Rocket Optimizer software can “detect when users are facing connections that need assistance and intervene in milliseconds,” thereby minimizing issues like long start times, re-buffering, and stalled videos. Skyfire says its customers include three large US mobile operators, and is in trials with ten other operators around the world. The deal is expected to close before March 15. When it does, Skyfire will continue to work as an independent subsidiary of Opera.

Mobile app analytics firm Flurry says China has overtaken the US to become the world’s top country for active Android and iOS smartphones and tablets. Tracking more than 2.4 billion app sessions per day across more than 275,000 apps, Flurry projects that China will have 246 million active Android and iOS devices, compared to 230 million in the US by the end of this month. And with China’s population far exceeding that of the US, the company does not foresee the rankings shift back in favor of the US.

Twitter users who primarily access the site via a mobile device are 57% less likely to use the social network on the desktop, when compared to average Twitter users, according to new data released by Kantar Media Compete and Twitter. In addition, these “mobile-first” Twitter users are 86% more likely to be on the social network several times a day; 63% more likely to click on links; 78% more likely to retweet; and 85% more likely to favorite a tweet. They are also 96% more likely than the average Twitter user to follow 11 or more brands on the social network, as well as 56% more likely to recall seeing an ad on Twitter.
Why it matters: Advertisers on Twitter might want to pay more attention to engaging with users via the company’s mobile ad products.

24/7 Media, WPP’s digital marketing tech company, has expanded its global Service Centers of Excellence with a new Service Center in Madrid, Spain. Established in 2011, the company’s Service Centers of Excellence are designed to provide technical support, account management, training, and ad campaign management to clients worldwide. In addition, the company has named Arousha Almassi the position of Director/Technical Support and Ad Operations, EMEA. She will oversee client support in the region.

Lynn Branigan has been named as the new Executive Director of Advertising Women of New York (AWNY). The AWNY focuses on providing women in the ad industry with a forum for personal and professional growth.

AARP has named Mike DeBartolo as its new SVP and Chief Revenue Officer. Beginning March 4, he will oversee all ad sales for AARP’s media properties. He is also charged with growing AARP’s media revenue streams, including print, digital, broadcast, and mobile. He will be based in NY and will report directly to Robyn Motley, SVP and GM, AARP Media.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

USA Network has launched a new eight-week interactive murder mystery called Psych The S#cial Sector. Developed in partnership with Theatrics, a provider of a collaborative video storytelling that enables companies to incorporate and manage user-generated content, The S#cial Sector allows users to assume the role of digital assistants and help Shawn and Gus (the two main characters of Psych) solve a crime. The experience features mini-games, crowd-sourcing challenges, and a Fan Theory Board that allows users to post video responses to weekly challenges from Psych characters.

A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE

Later – Sahil
Sahil Patel, Associate Editor for Cynopsis Digital
02.19.13

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