Cynopsis: DIGITAL
07/28/09
Good morning, it’s Tuesday, July 28, 2009, and this is your first early morning digital briefing.
Head of NBC Entertainment Ben Silverman, whose Reveille production unit brought us hits such as The Office and Ugly Betty, is leaving to join IAC Chairman Barry Diller in a new online content production outfit following the launch of NBC’s new fall season. (The news came out of an IAC release and an NBC announcement expanding Jeff Gaspin’s duties to include oversight of NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios.) The studio will look to achieve efficiencies in distribution, appeal to a broader base, as well as involve sponsors from the beginning of the creative process. NBC Universal will also continue to have a relationship with its former Entertainment co-chair, via platform partnerships and a potential future investment. Ryan Seacrest, who is close friends with Silverman, gave his fans a little preview of the story on Twitter early Monday, suggesting “household names” could be involved.
The iTunes platform has always been perfect for singles but there’s never been much incentive to download entire albums - why would you when you can cherry pick only the songs you like? Well Apple has gotten together with the 4 major record labels, EMI, Warner Music, Sony and Universal Music on a new project to invent a new digital album format embedding interactive extras with the music, per the FT. Album material would include videos, photos, lyrics and songs not otherwise available. The project, code named “Cocktail,” is also tied to Apple’s touch-based tablet computer – sort of a larger format iPod touch rumored to be coming out in time for Christmas.
Gannet’s USA Today will launch a new daily e-Edition of the paper on Aug. 3 to print subscribers or folks willing to pay for the interactive edition; a 52-week digital subscription will run $99 and an eight-week trial subscription is $9.95, which will renew to $9.95 every four weeks. The edition, powered by Olive Software, will include cool content such as videos embedded directly into articles, interactive puzzles and games including crossword puzzles and Sudoku. The interface will provide thumbnail accessible to news, weather, market data and TV listings. Text-to-speech functionality will search for content from back issues and allow readers to listen to top stories. USA Today will also deliver its first weekend EXTRA edition electronically.
NBCU’s Mun2, which holds exclusive English language rights to the Aug. 12 World Cup qualifier between the U.S. and Mexico, is offering a free multiplatform preview to all its distribution partners that day. A free preview of mun2 will be promoted in each market with cross channel spots; web banners; customizable postcards and e-blasts to customers. Consumers will be able to find where mun2 is available through distributors’ websites and the holamun2.com channel finder.
NPR.org completed a relaunch featuring a cleaner look, improved search functionality powered by Google, easier navigation and better integration of text and audio content. There’s little video featured on the site (it is a radio entity, after all.) But NPR.org does provide easy access to live streams or podcasts of member NPR stations like WBUR, which utilized the NPR.org API to redesign its own homepage.
Conspiracy drove avid viewership for Lost. ABC.com is fleshing out more backstory on the “Dharma” (Department of Heuristics and Research on Material Applications) Initiative with a new 5-part web series it previewed at Comic Con, sponsored exclusively by Kia Motors. A new short will be introduced each month through Nov.
Just before Ben Silverman agreed to jump on board, IAC announced the launch of a new video content company dubbed Notional, born out of the comedic viral video destination CollegeHumor.com. The company will be headed by CEO Ricky Van Veen, who has served as Editor-in-Chief of CollegeHumor, and President of Television Dave Noill, from NYC-based City Lights Media. CollegeHumor co-founder Josh Abramson will remain at CollegeHumor and oversee its operations, as well as those of other CollegeHumor Media sites.
Are you unhappy with your current registered Facebook username? (Perhaps you picked a moniker you thought would be hip and you’re already tired of it.) It turns out that Facebook is offering a new option in the account settings page under the username link to allow you to change it. But here’s the catch – you can only change in once.
Female-targeted TheFrisky.com has acquired the first 16 webisodes of the online comedy series Merrime.com from Red Ladders Entertainment, starring Kaily Smith in the title role. Look for new episodes of the send up of online dating every Wednesday and Friday.
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~ DIGITAL ADVERTISING ~
AOL announced it is rebranding its Platform A advertising operations as AOL Advertising and its MediaGlow unit as AOL Media, effective in September. The company’s new CEO Tim Armstrong warned employees last week that another round of layoffs could also be coming; AOL has already eliminated about 700 jobs this year.
AMC is promoting the new season of Mad Men with a series of viral marketing and social media apps, sponsored by Eight O’Clock Coffee:
- Mad Men Yourself allows you to build your own 60’s themed avatar that reflects the look of Mad Men’s characters, sharable on Facebook, Twitter, the iPhone, etc.
- The Mad Men quiz game launches on AMCtv.com on Aug. 10, posing questions to see which character you most resemble
- S3, Eight O’Clock’s agency, created an eCard series featuring Mad Men regulars, also launching Aug. 10
Discovery Channel is rolling out a new on-air and online campaign to promote its lineup of Sunday night specials. Beginning August 2, awesomesundays.com will feature fansites with Sunday sneak peeks and topic driven information for upcoming programs, such as the 8-part extreme weather-themed Raging Planet. Additional content includes a user-generated puzzle game on discovery.com and Facebook, information pertaining to the on-air factoids powered by howstuffworks.com and thousands of trivia quizzes.
Univision.com signed State Farm to sponsor of its webnovela “Crossed Lives,” premiering later this summer. Online offerings will include video overlays, sponsored character bios and interactive polls where viewers will have a voice in choosing a plot outcome. State Farm will also reach mobile users through a text-to-win sweepstakes.
Home gaming platforms, Blu-ray penetration and HDTV households are all on the rise according to Centris‘ latest quarterly U.S. Communications and Entertainment Insights Report.
- Blu-ray ownership increased from 7.2 million HHs in Q1 ’08 to 12.3 million HHs the quarter (+71%)
- HDTV set homes increased from 37.4 million to 50.5 million while HDTV service homes are up from 26 million to 34.7 million; (both up roughly 33% in a year)
- Nearly 63 million HHs have cable TV, a majority being Digital Cable subscribers (up by 2% from 37.2 million in Q1 ’08). The average monthly analog cable bill is just over $58 and that for digital cable is nearly $75
- Satellite increased slightly to 32 million HHs, with the average monthly satellite bill averaging $69, unchanged from a year ago
- Nintendo Wii households climbed by 85% since Q1 ’08 to 15.2 million HHs; Sony PS3’s foothold gained 52% to reach 7 million HHs; and the X-Box 360 gained 28% to 11.4 million HHs. (However the NPD Group‘s latest data for June of this year suggests that the game market is struggling as of late, with hardware sales falling 38% y/y in June. Video game sales dropped below $1 billion last month for the first time since 2007
Samsung introduced the latest e-book reader on Monday featuring a 5-inch touch screen that allows users to jot down memos while they read, per the WSJ. The initial version, retailing for about $270 in South Korea, will sell downloadable books from the local Kyobo bookstore chain. But unlike the Kindle, it lacks the ability to connect to the internet directly and must be connected to a PC to download content.
Mobile music start-up Spotify has submitted a streaming music app for approval for the iPhone and iPod touch. Currently available in Sweden, Norway, Finland, the UK, France and Spain, Spotify streams music for free with ads, offers a premium subscriptions service and links to e-commerce sites for direct track and album purchases.
Digital media shop SpectrumDNA has designed a new “Addictionary” app for NYPost.com that allows users to create their own words and definitions. The application is set to launch in August and will pave the way for derivative products including greeting cards, calendars, games and books featuring the top-rated words created by the community at the newspaper site.
Zeeshan Zaidi, former COO of NABBR, joins Lime Wire as Head of Global, a newly created position responsible for developing and executing a global strategy for the P2P software firm. Zeeshan will be based in New York and report to George Searle, Lime Wire CEO.
Santa Monica-based digital media company Ascent Media Group made a pair of new hires, naming former Move Networks SVP Douglas Parrish as EVP/Operations and former Disruptive Works Media founder Drake Pruitt as SVP/Business Development. Douglas reports to Jose Royo, CEO while Drake reports to Tom Kuehle, EVP/Strategic Solutions.
A CYNOPSIS MESSAGE
The Primetime Emmy® Awards 2009 Special Issue Series
Dedicated to Emmy® Nominated Programming & Talent
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~ WEBSITE OF THE DAY ~
Actor, writer, comedian, Oscar Wilde aficionado and Britain’s foremost Twitter wit Stephen Fry is not only a tremendous talent; he’s also got a great website. It features all the bells and whistles an entertainer should have who is trying to make a go of it in the digital age, including a cheeky blog, a selection of audio and video segments, a social networking component and a general store where you can link to Stephen’s DVDs, recorded readings, writings and other odds and ends. That includes free links to the address he gave earlier this month on digital copyright issues at the iTunes festival. (He even wore an Apple Store T-shirt for the occasion as a way to “lick the inner thigh” of Apple.) Be warned that Fry is not exactly pro-industry – he sympathizes with The Pirate Bay and compares the music labels to big tobacco for their propensity to sue. Find a free hour to listen to it through until the end – it’s one of the most informative, honest, spot-on examinations on how artists should view copyright in today’s turbulent times. His message to the entertainment industry is basically to stop with the Gestapo tactics – you’re alienating future legitimate buyers.
A couple of corrections from yesterday’s edition: The new Candace Bushnell web series in development is called “The Broadroom” not the Boardroom. Also, EU’s fines leveled at Microsoft have totaled in the billions, about 1.7 to be precise.
Later — Wayne
Wayne Karrfalt for Cynopsis: Digital
07.28.09
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JOB OPENING: DIGITAL AE/ABC Family/NYC: Develop, maintain, grow revenue against strategic advertising accounts for abcfamily.com 3+ yrs digital sales exp Apply www.disneyabcjobs.com Req # 198753 (8/4)
JOB OPENING: VP, PR/MSG Varsity (New Cablevision network)/LI: 10+ yrs exp creating/managing strategic media relations programs. Exp with sports programming preferred. Apply [email protected] (8/4)
JOB OPENING: IN HOUSE FREELANCE INTERACTION DESIGNER, DIG MEDIA/Sesame Workshop/NY: 3+ yrs dig. media design & user interface dvlpmt exp (multi-client design firm/vendor-side exp) EOE/M/F/D/AAP Apply [email protected] (8/4)
JOB OPENING: METRO TV AFFILIATE SALES:Resp for dvlpng new affiliations.Mng/grow existing affiliations. Knwlg of TV dist biz as well as Synd & affil sales exp. Resume and salary requirements to: [email protected] (8/4)
JOB OPENING: VP, CREATIVE SRVS/VERSUS NTWRK/COMCAST/PA: Visionary creative/passion for the craft/strong work ethic, dev & mgmt skills? Req’d 8-10+ yrs exp. @ TV Ntwrk, ad agency, or post prod/design firm. Apply: www.comcast.com (8/4)
JOB OPENING: DVLPMNT EXEC/NY: Est’d prod. Co. seeks creative, workaholic, self-starter to oversee reality & non-fiction dvlpmnt. Solid ind contacts, exceptional ideas & exp selling to ntwrks a must. Res/Cvr Ltr: [email protected] (8/4)
JOB OPENING: AD SALES RESEARCH SR MGR/ION/NY: Great opp w/ media brand, 6+ yrs ad sales research exp, strong analytic skills & strategic thinking vital, Galaxy/N Power/MRI/TNS req’d. EOE. Apply [email protected] (8/1)
JOB OPENING: AD SALES PLANNER/Kids Ntwrk./NY: 1+yrs Advrtsng Sales exp. pref Kids; support in growing existing buz; recommendations for new buz dvlpmt. Apply: http://www.thecookiejarcompany.com/cj_careers.php (8/1)
JOB OPENING: CONSUMER MARKETING MANAGER/FOOD NETWORK/ NY– Manage integrated marketing & execution of all consumer advertising. 5-7 yrs entertainment mkting and/or ad agency exp is req’d. Prod exp a plus. www.scrippsnetworks.com (8/1)
JOB OPENING: RESEARCH ANALYST /Fox Latin American Channels: Support busy Res. Dept. Strong analytical/comm/computer/presentation skills, PPT & Excel. Nielsen data & systems. a+ Email: [email protected] (8/1)
JOB OPENING: DIR DIGITAL MEDIA OPS/Ovation/Santa Monica: Knwlg/exp mngng operations of a growing digital media biz.5 yrs digital operations exp. Strong analytical/ rsrch skills. Cvr letter/salary req: [email protected] (8/1)
JOB OPENING: EXEC DIRECTOR/Drexel University/Phila: Top TV, news or film producer or exec to run an institute related to our academic programs. Visit: http://www.drexel.edu/westphal/jobs/ (8/1)
JOB OPENING: SR DIRECTOR, PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT/MTV/NYC: 7+ yrs exp. in building & developing interactive digital products; Creation of digital product documents; B.A. EOE/M/F/D/AAP apply www.mtvcareers.com (8/1)
JOB OPENING: LINE PROD-Freelance/ABC/ENT. MKTG/Burbank: Mng creation of brdcst quality spots/clips for air various outlets. 3yrs+ exp Post Prod., pref. w/ promos.Final Cut Pro & flex sched a must. Apply: [email protected] (8/1)
JOB OPENING: DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMMING/GSN Santa Monica: 5-7 yrs exp in pre & post production, digital programming initiatives, budgeting, casting and development. Please send resume to [email protected] (8/1)
JOB OPENING: DIGITAL MEDIA TECH/NEW YORK: Digital Media tech for post prod, encoding & prod of graphics. Visit www.mylifetime.com/about-us/welcome https://www.abso.com/jobboard/Default.aspx?JOBBOARDID=507&JobDetail=57420 (7/31)
JOB OPENING: ON AIR TECHNICIAN/New York: OnAir Tech Master Control Ops Prod & post production duties. Apply @ www.mylifetime.com/about-us/welcome https://www.abso.com/jobboard/Default.aspx?JOBBOARDID=507&JobDetail=58756 (7/30)
JOB OPENING: CNS-PROJ COORD/Comcast/NY: Supp Sales & Traffic sys by identifying, resrchng/resolving tech/bus issues. Help w/Quality Assurance, app train’g/implementation. Apply: http://www.ecentralmetrics.com/url/?u=4002157639-19 6 EOE (7/30)
INTERNSHIPS – These positions are for credit only – nobody gets paid here. These ads are always posted for free , and students work for school credit only. For more information on the specs for posting an Internship ad, email Trish at [email protected] .
FALL INTERNSHIP CREDITS ONLY: TV One has internship opportunities for undergraduate school credit only- locations in NY, MD, LA and IL. Visit us at www.tvoneonline.com for details (8/4)
FALL INTERNSHIP CREDITS ONLY: AUDIENCE RESEARCH/Premiere Radio Networks/NY: Fall Intern, Ad Sales Audience Research, 2-3 days/15-24 hrs/wk, Majors: Mktg, Adv., Media. Skills: Excel, PowerPoint. Contact [email protected] (7/30)
FALL INTERNSHIP CREDITS ONLY: PR/DIY Network/Knoxville: Fall press/editorial intern- press dept. 2-3 days/16-24 hrs/wk, Majors: Journalism/PR/Comm, Skills: AP Style, Writing, MS Office. www.scrippsnetworks.com click on “Careers.” Req # 945 & 946 (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED ADS, POSTED BY THOSE LOOKING TO BE HIRED … There is no charge for placing your Situation Wanted ad … for more information contact Trish Pihonak at [email protected]
SITUATION WANTED: PRODUCER/DIRECTOR/NYC BASED: 10yrs. EXP in films and reality TV. Available immediately. Contact: [email protected]. … LINKS: http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/289517/A-Miami-Tail/overview (8/4)
SITUATION WANTED: PRODUCER/EIC/PROD MGR (LA): 10+ Yrs Industry Experience. TV/Web/Industrial. Seeks long term full time position. Camera and FCP savvy. Package deal. On schedule and under budget! Contact – [email protected] (8/4)
SITUATION WANTED:ASST PRODUCER/COORDINATOR/MGR/PA(NY) Experience: ABC, NBC, CBS, BBC, MTV, Food Network, History Channel, Sesame Street, NY1. Resume: Charles.Goon.googlepages.com Email: [email protected] (8/1)
SITUATION WANTED: MARKETING/PROMOTIONS/Boston: Marketing/promotions professional seeks television, web marketing, social networking focused position. Experienced in international markets. Creative + will travel. [email protected] (8/1)
SITUATION WANTED: Seasoned MARKETING RSRCH PROFESSIONAL seeks freelance or PT/FT opportunities. Specialized in syndicated and primary research. Experience in working with multicultural and kids’ markets. [email protected] (8/1)
SITUATION WANTED: 5 PRIME TIME EMMYS/ DOC. PROD, DIR., WRITER in L.A. Credits: National Geo, PBS, Discovery, History CH, TLC and MSNBC. Contact email: [email protected] (8/1)
SITUATION WANTED: PUBLIC/MEDIA RELATIONS, WEB CONTENT MNGMNT POSITION. English/French fluent w/ 7+ yrs communications experience. Last worked in financial industry, but flexible with other industries. Contact: [email protected] (8/1)
SITUATION WANTED: OFFICE OR SET PA/PERSONAL ASSNT/LA: 5 yrs. exp, well organized, pays attention, fast learner. Will relocate + can start asap. [email protected] (8/1)
SITUATION WANTED: WRITING or PROD ASTNT/WRITER/ALL PROD WORK in NY: TV, Film, Web or Commercial. Graduate of Northwestern U’s TV/Film + Business Programs. Strengths in writing, all levels of prod + finance Contact: [email protected] (7/31)
SITUATION WANTED: 20+ yrs. experience in TV Broadcasting & Cable ACCOUNTING/FINANCE. Seeking FT/PT or Temp-to-Perm position: immediate start. Please contact: [email protected] (7/31)
SITUATION WANTED: 7 years experience: Interned for a President, Executive Assistant to SVP, VP, and personal assistant to film director and celebrity. Looking for Executive Assistant Position in film/TV. [email protected] (7/30)
SITUATION WANTED: MEDIA PLANNING/Los Angeles Full Time/Freelance; 10+ yrs exp. Experience-General Market and Hispanic. Works independently or manages staff. Large and small agency exp. [email protected] (7/30)
SITUATION WANTED: EDITOR in L.A. and/or NYC Credits: MTV, Nickelodeon, The Weinstein company. View Reel at www.abhinavbhat.com Contact email: [email protected] (7/30)
SITUATION WANTED: SUPERVISING STORY PRODUCER: Story Producer for top network and cable reality shows (Dancing With the Stars, Flipping Out) available after July 24 in Los Angeles. Plays well with editors. [email protected] (7/30)
SITUATION WANTED: PRODUCER: 4+ yrs exp. Entert & Music TV shows for MTV & others. Writer & Field Prod. Strong Mng, people, ethic skills. Direct talent, artist on field. Bi-lingual Spanish. FCP, Photshop, Mini DV Cam. [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: Seasoned special sales/sub rights PUBLISHING PRO is searching for the next great opportunity in children’s media, licensing or product development.Creative, strategic and conceptual seller. Please contact me at [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: MEDIA BUYER/FREELANCER avail w 10+ yrs exp buying local, online and nat’l media. Assist w strategy, planning costs, competitive analysis, buy execution and maintenance. Able to work remotely. [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: SEASONED SPECIAL SALES/SUB RIGHTS PUBLISHING PRO seeks next great opportunity in children’s media, licensing or product development. Creative, strategic and conceptual seller. Please contact me at [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: Experienced ENTERTAINMENT/MEDIA/NY with in-house television exp 2 yrs. (HBO,NBC) editing/managing/producing. Seeking a production, managerial full time position. [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: SALES AND MKTG. COORD/MGR/LA: 2 yrs. of exp. in the cable industry, integrated media intelligence, licensing, product development. Hungry, reliable, intelligent, immediate start. [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: WRITER/FIELD PRODUCER/STORY PRODUCER (LA) for all you’re reality needs. CBS,NBC,E! MTV,VH-1,SPIKE REEL AVAILABLE CONTACT [email protected] (7/29)
SITUATION WANTED: SR SALES POSITION: seasoned media pro including 11 yrs at agencies in planning, 5 yrs selling ntl cable,& 2 yrs selling emerging media. I am looking for my next great sales career. [email protected] (7/29)
E-mail [email protected] or call Trish Pihonak at 203.926.9878 for rates and specs for Job Openings.
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