Too Much Caffeine
There is a great deal of buzz right now in both conventional and online media about GooTube, MySpace along with the start-up Joost, and their impact on conventional television. There is so much happening that it is hard to keep track, much less perspective, and by that I mean, keep in mind that none of the online video services come close to a volume of use, viewers, or revenue that conventional broadcasting does. The main reason for excitement here is GROWTH, and the potential for more.
The GooTube noteworthy element is the BBC removing its content, like Viacom did, but unlike Viacom, they have been posting the clips there themselves.
Not mentioned is how they have managed to make it difficult for the clips to be embedded elsewhere, which some have found annoying. IT makes sense really- keep control of the content and the viewer. Don’t let the content be just anywhere.
You also have Mark Cuban, owner of HDnet, and the Dallas Mavericks among other things, suggesting that the big media response to social media sites, and YouTube in particular is to overwhelm them with SPAM, tied to advertising of the big media. While I appreciate the concept, I have to agree with this poster who suggests that it is a form of brand suicide.
The reporting on MySpace of interest was this report suggesting that the wave for MySpace has already crested.. Provocatively titled “Life After MySpace” it suggests that new users will render MySpace “so Twenty Minutes Ago” and references a report showing that MySpace Video sessions are down 10% since December.
Frankly, I don’t think the value in MySpace is dependent or even remotely tied to the video function. It seems much more about the social aspects. YouTube on the other hand is all about the video, and unfortunately, fairly poor quality video at that.
That is why there is so much excitement about Joost. Besides having the pedigree of two home run hitters in the founders, Joost promises full screen High Definition long form over the internet. Won’t that be just like cable TV?.
So the question remains, what about the content owners who currently dominate conventional media?
Fox came out this week with the announcement, partnering with their affiliates to stream its shows on the affiliates’ websites, something they have done on their owned and operated stations’ sites since August. Good for Fox, advancing business with their established partners by building on the existing content and partnerships.
The rumor mill has Blockbuster buying their online site Movielink. Given the ambition of the distributors to get rid of the video rental shop, and that Movielink was their first toe in the water, this is an interesting development. Will Wal-Mart, Target and Netflix be the online retailers of content? Stay tuned.
Then there is the discussion of just what does the BitTorrent move to legitimate content distribution mean? . Charles Arthur in The Guardian, suggests that it might mean more piracy. “How now can they distinguish Bittorrent transfers that have the approval of the content owners, and those that do not? Illicit Bittorrent use could explode: “You can even search for torrents by putting in what you’re looking for, then adding ‘torrent’ in any search engine,” the site says helpfully.”
To which we say “SmartMarks!” Just this week a partner of USVO, Digimarc announced a patent for a technology to recognize copyrighted material on such sights and notify the owner. While it might seem that Digimarc is timely, it is significant that this patent was filed in 1998, long before any of today’s social networking or media sites were glints in their founders eyes, or imaginations. USVO began their watermarking effort in 2001. Similarly, the path toward a vibrant and open content marketplace will take time, and investment.
If the content marketplace is generating billions of dollars in revenue, and piracy in its various forms is costing an estimated 18 billion dollars, what exactly is the appropriate value of the solutions that will 1) reduce that loss and 2) enable the full exploitation of the digital content distribution technology?
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