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Analysis for 'Social Media'
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Social Recommendations: No Surprises There
Today I'm pleased to share a contributed post from Alan Wolk. Alan is Global Lead Analyst at KIT digital. He frequently speaks about the television industry in general and second screen interactions in particular, both at conferences and to anyone who'll listen. Recently named as one of the "Top 20 Thinkers In Social TV and Second Screen" Wolk is one of the main architects behind the award-winning KIT Social Program Guide and writes about the television industry at the Toad Stool blog. You can find him on Twitter at @awolk
If you are interested in contributing to VideoNuze, please contact me!
Social Recommendations: No Surprises There
by Alan Wolk
There’s a firmly held belief in the world of social TV and social media that our social graphs-- the people we are friends with on Facebook and Twitter and other social networks-- are the best source of recommendations for anything from restaurants to movies to TV shows. (Witness this week’s Facebook Graph Search announcement.)
I’m here to suggest that may not be the case, particularly in regards to television.
Let’s take Facebook, the most personal of the social networks. While it is considered good form by many on Twitter and LinkedIin to connect with relative strangers, our Facebook friends are generally people we know in real life.
Or knew.Categories: Social Media
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VideoNuze-TDG Report Podcast #149 - zeebox Comes to the U.S.; Connected TVs Now Top Screen for Streaming
Colin Dixon, senior partner at The Diffusion Group and I are back for the 149th edition of the VideoNuze-TDG Report podcast. This week Colin kicks things off discussing zeebox's entry into the U.S. market, plus its new partnerships with Comcast, NBCU and HBO. Colin has used zeebox in the U.K. (where it has over 1.5 million users) and has been very impressed. zeebox falls into the general category of "second screen apps" but Colin notes its current focus on live TV was likely the hook for its new partners. With a sizable segment of viewers having shifted their viewing to on-demand, an app that helps drive some back to live would have lots of positives for TV networks.
We then shift to discuss new research released by NPD Group this week that 45% of consumers reported the TV as the main screen for viewing online video, up from 33% a year ago. Those identifying the PC as the main screen dropped from 48% to 31%. As I explain, this is noteworthy because it shows how online video is in fact moving to the living room, becoming a more mainstream behavior. As online video finds itself on more of an even footing with traditional TV, it raises the stakes for cord-cutting and shaving, along with shifting ad dollars from TV to online video.
Listen in to learn more!
Click here to listen to the podcast (20 minutes, 31 seconds)
Click here for previous podcasts
The VideoNuze-TDG Report podcast is available in iTunes...subscribe today!Categories: Devices, Podcasts, Research, Social Media
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US Open Tennis Scores With Google Hangouts
These days you can pick any sport and you're guaranteed to find examples of how online video is improving the fan experience. Beyond improved access, through live streaming to multiple devices, and post-event catch-up through highlight clips, another dimension of online video's value is now also emerging - fan engagement and interaction. A perfect example of this is the US Open tennis tournament's first-time use of Google Hangouts during its men's and women's finals matches.
Recently, I caught up with the two US Tennis Association executives responsible for the hangouts, Phil Green, senior director, advanced media and Peter Dopkin, director, strategic and business development, advanced media, to learn more. Listening to the strategy behind the hangouts, and how they were executed, what struck me is that in the digital age, forward-thinking sports executives are able to bring the fan, analyst and game together as never before.Categories: Social Media, Sports
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TV Everywhere Authentication Improves Again as Synacor Enables Social Logins
The process of authenticating users for TV Everywhere content access is improving yet again, as Synacor announced this morning that users will be able to log in via their Facebook, Twitter and Google accounts. The use of social IDs has become widely deployed by web services providers, but had not yet been made available in the TV Everywhere world. With the feature, users will be able to tie their pay-TV accounts to their social media accounts which means they'll no longer have to remember pay-TV specific login credentials to gain access to TV Everywhere content. This will reduce friction and should drive higher TV Everywhere adoption.
Categories: Social Media, TV Everywhere
Topics: Synacor, TV Everywhere
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mPortal Enhances TV Everywhere With Social TV APIs
mPortal, whose SPRINGBROARD Media platform allows pay-TV operators and content providers to create cloud-based TV Everywhere apps, is being enhanced with a new set of social TV APIs to build second screen companion apps for connected devices.
While the number of social TV startups abound, mPortal's VP, Products Fady Lamaa told me that mPortal believes its social TV APIs are the first to be integrated fully with TV Everywhere app building tools, meaning that pay-TV operators and content providers can present unified, branded TV Everywhere/social experience to their users. mPortal is seeking to capitalize on two of the biggest video trends today: connected device viewing and social.Categories: Social Media, TV Everywhere
Topics: mPortal, TV Everywhere
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Mogreet's moShare Powers Mobile Video Distribution via Texting
Following its success helping leading marketers distribute video and other rich media messages to mobile devices, Mogreet is now looking to do the same for individuals, with its recently launched moShare service. moShare distinguishes itself from other social platforms in that the video or rich media being shared is sent via a text message to the recipient's mobile device, with content formatted specifically for viewing or playback on it.
Categories: Mobile Video, Social Media
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Twitvid Launches Social Video Network
Twitvid is broadening its mission today, from being a way to share mobile videos to Twitter, to becoming an "open social video network" that allows users to subscribe to particular channels or video feeds that interest them. The channels could be based on topics, people or brands, and consist of videos sourced from YouTube, Vimeo and Twitvid itself initially, with others to follow. Twitvid's CEO Mo Adham explained to me last week that because users are prone to view video from multiple sources, the new initiative helps simplify the overall video experience. When selecting a particular channel, all the new videos that have been added to it auto-play. Channels can be private or public and shared via social networks with friends and followers.
Categories: Social Media
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VideoNuze Report Podcast #112 - Facebook's Video Opportunities
I'm pleased to be joined by Colin Dixon, senior partner at The Diffusion Group, for the 112th edition of the VideoNuze Report podcast, for Dec. 2, 2011. Today Colin and I discuss how Facebook has become a leader in online video and the range of opportunities it has ahead. Earlier this week I reported how Facebook was ranked as the #2 video site in October by comScore, with nearly 60 million viewers. Though YouTube is still by far the biggest online video site, Facebook has made huge progress over the past year. Listen in to learn more!
Click here to listen to the podcast (16 minutes, 25 seconds)
Click here for previous podcasts
The VideoNuze Report is available in iTunes...subscribe today!Categories: Podcasts, Social Media
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Facebook Surges to Number 2 Video Site in October: comScore
Social media juggernaut Facebook surged into the number 2 position for unique video viewers on comScore's U.S. online video ranking for October, 2011. This is the highest rank Facebook has achieved, and its 59.8 million viewers nudged it past VEVO at 57 million, which was down just slightly from September. Facebook's unique viewers jumped approximately 10 million from its September total of approximately 50 million viewers. The big October bump comes after a relatively flat past 12 months of viewers, though a doubling of monthly video views (see charts below). In October alone, Facebook's total video views increased to 346 million, 37% higher than September.
Categories: Social Media
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Q&A with Bismarck Lepe, president of products at Ooyala - 11/2/11
1. How important is video to a social media strategy and vice versa?
Social media is about sharing and discovering. We login to Facebook or Twitter or FourSquare because we want to share our latest pictures, videos, ideas, or items of interest, such as an article, video or song. We also login to find out what our friends and acquaintances are up to, or discover what they’re reading and watching. Adding social dimensions to video is an effective way to facilitate content discovery. Said another way, it’s an effective way to let your audience become your marketers.
At the same time, watching TV, movies and other video content is an inherently social experience. We go to the movies with friends, sit around the TV with family, and discuss the latest hit show with co-workers. By combining video with social media elements, a publisher can recreate in a digital setting the ways we already engage with content in the offline world. That creates a more engaging and “sticky” social media experience.
Categories: Advertising, Social Media
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Ooyala Gets Social With Facebook Integration
Online video platform Ooyala is announcing Ooyala Social this morning, including a deep integration with Facebook that enhances the popular social network's opportunity to become a meaningful video distribution platform by leveraging "social graph" information. The first content provider to use some components of Ooyala Social is film studio Miramax, which several weeks ago began offering 20 movies for rental on Facebook through its Miramax eXperience app. Ooyala CEO Jay Fulcher gave me a rundown of Ooyala Social last week and group marketing manager Nick Edwards walked me through the how Miramax is using Ooyala Social so far.
Categories: Social Media, Technology
Topics: Facebook, Ooyala Social
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SupersonicAds CEO Sees Social Game Incented Video Model As the "New Prime Time"
Incented video views in social games are all the rage and yesterday, SupersonicAds, one of the many players in this space, raised a $4.2 million financing from Greylock (bringing its total to date to $6 million). I caught up with SupersonicAds CEO and co-founder Gil Shoham who sees this model as the "new prime time" as it marries the massive usage of social game use in Facebook and elsewhere with brands' desire to reach the audience.
For those not familiar, companies like SupersonicAds (and others such as Jun Group, Blue Noodle, WildTangent, Social Vibe, etc.) work with social game publishers and social networks to promote video ads that reward users with virtual currency for viewing (see Kellogg's example below). Gil sees the reward as the "hook" to get users watching, but the post-viewing engagement (e.g. "Likes," click-throughs, sign-ups, etc.) are based solely on the brand's appeal and the strength of the creative. Gil said 50-80% of users watch the full video, with an average 20% of those "Liking" the brand and 40% returning later to visit the brand's web site.
Categories: Advertising, Games, Social Media
Topics: Facebook, Greylock, SupersonicAds
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Claussen Pickles Is Latest Brand to Use Incentivized Video Views
Claussen Pickles, which is part of the Kraft Foods family, is the latest brand to successfully use incentivized video views in social games. For those not familiar with the concept (which I wrote about last April), those playing social games on sites like Facebook and others are offered the opportunity to earn virtual currency in exchange for watching a brand's video and/or engaging with it in a particular way (e.g. sharing, liking, etc.). The brand gets an uncluttered experience delivered to a highly-targeted audience.
Mitchell Reichgut, CEO of Jun Group, whose firm partnered with ad agency The Escape Pod, to execute the Claussen campaign, shared the 1-minute video that was created, called "Journey to the Claussen Pickles" (see video below). The offbeat video highlights the idea that Claussen pickles are found in the refrigerated section of the grocery store, and though they require extra effort to find, are worth it.
Mitchell said that video is targeted to moms playing social games on sites like Facebook. The completion rate is 75-80%, driven be the need to finish viewing in order to earn the reward. Of those that complete viewing, approximately 10% "Like" Claussen on Facebook, which means the brand now has a direct communications channel to send future offers and news.
Categories: Advertising, Games, Social Media
Topics: Claussen Pickles, Jun Group, Kraft Foods, The Escape Pod
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Facebook-Skype Integration Could Be Next Big Inflection Point for Video Use
Facebook and Skype introduced an elegant integration earlier today which allows Facebook members to easily video chat with each other. The demo looks slick; you simply go to a friend's profile page or find them in the chat window, click on the video camera icon and are connected. One big benefit of the integration vs. the way Skype ordinarily works is that you can instantly communicate with your friend on Facebook that you want to have a video call and if the friend doesn't have the Skype plug-in they can download it in 20-30 seconds and get started.
By taking a lot of the friction out of video chatting, and by exposing this feature to Facebook's 750 million users, this new feature could become the next big inflection point for online and mobile video usage. Over the last 5 years online and mobile video usage has exploded, and arguably YouTube, Hulu, Netflix and Apple have been the main drivers. YouTube's user-generated and sharing roots exposed tens of millions of people to watching video online in the first place. Then Hulu and Netflix capitalized on this awareness by making household-name premium quality video available. Apple has played its part introducing mobile devices (iPhone, iPod, iPad) that enable more convenient, flexible viewing.
Categories: Communications, Social Media
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Budweiser Rolls Out "Big Time" Social Media Reality Contest
Budweiser has rolled out a new reality show dubbed "Bud United Presents: The Big Time," (Facebook registration required) which lets four contest winners train for their "big time" dream with celebrities such as NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick, chef Hubert Keller and others. Entries are being solicited via Bud's Facebook and Renren pages. The project's creative team includes @radical.media and six-time Emmy winner Evan Weinstein. Big Time follows on "Bud United: Beer House," an online reality show the company launched during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Big Time is a perfect example of how online video and social media allow major brands to take greater control of how they interact with audiences, going far beyond the classic 30-second TV spot. Rather than the usual model where a TV network heavily guides a show's concept, scheduling and promotion, with Big Time, Budweiser has taken the reins on all of these aspects. With social media, Bud can generate awareness and interest, and with online video it has an avenue for both video-based submissions and for distribution.
Categories: Advertising, Social Media
Topics: Budweiser
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Little League + Facebook + Hilton HHonors = Home Run
One of the things about online video that has always intrigued me is how it gives brands innovative ways to engage with target consumers. Thus, a promotional email I received last night, as a parent of a 9-year old Little Leaguer, caught my attention. Little League has partnered with Hilton HHonors for a "play of the week" contest, which calls for parents to submit videos of their favorite plays (aka their kid's shining moments) to a special section of Hilton HHonors Facebook page. Each week that batch of videos will be judged and a winner will be placed into a group of 20 finalists, eligible for prizes. From my perspective, the contest is a home run for all parties.
Hilton HHonors gains 100% share of voice in a campaign that positions them nicely as a "good guy," helping parents draw attention to their kid's on-field accomplishments. The company also gains all the contact information for each participant, giving it valuable information for future communications.
Categories: Brand Marketing, Social Media, UGC
Topics: Facebook, Hilton HHonors, Little League
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Jun Group Pioneers "Incentivized" Video Ad Views In Social Games
As a non-gamer, I've been fascinated, from a distance, by the whole "virtual currency" and "virtual goods" models that millions of gamers are so passionate about. Now it turns out there's a way of marrying gamers' pursuit of virtual currency with driving opt-in video views for major brands' online video ads. Jun Group, a social video company, has been a pioneer in this emerging space, and last week its CEO Mitchell Reichgut gave me a primer on how the model works, and why it's being adopted. Jun Group is also issuing an update on its progress today.
First, for those not familiar with virtual currency, it is used to purchase specific virtual goods which enhance the experience in online games, social networks and virtual worlds. Typically there are many different ways to earn virtual currency within any particular environment, including paying for it with actual cash (yes, buying "virtual" currency with "actual" currency - it's all part of the gaming experience!), all of which adds up to a reported $2 billion per year industry.
Categories: Advertising, Social Media
Topics: Jun Group
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Facebook-Warner Bros.: Big Deal or Little Deal?
Speaking of movies, this week brought news that Facebook was dipping its toe into Hollywood's waters, by offering Warner Bros. "The Dark Knight" for purchase and rental to its members. Though Warner positioned the move as an experiment, Netflix stock went into a free-fall as investors swooned over Facebook's possibilities. But as a former business school professor of mine was fond of asking his class, "Is this a BIG deal or a LITTLE deal?"
Categories: FIlms, Social Media, Studios
Topics: Facebook, Neflix, Warner Bros.
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Sharethrough Is On A Roll As Brands' Social Video Surges
Sharethrough, the social video ad platform and distribution network, is on a roll as brands of all sizes are shifting some of their focus to creating their own immersive video experiences that go far beyond traditional 15 and 30-second TV spots. Sharethrough's role is to help get branded content into the social media slipstream, to be viewed and shared by target audiences. Earlier this week Sharethrough's CEO and founder Dan Greenberg brought me up to speed on the company's progress and also the changes he's seeing in the market.
Dan reports that in 2010 Sharethrough grew its agency client base by 43%, adding to its roster firms such as Pereira & O'Dell, Universal McCann, Evolution Bureau and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. As Dan explained, agencies are increasingly being called upon by their brand clients to create distinctive video campaigns that capitalize on the trends toward online video and social media. In this way brands themselves are becoming content creators, moving from an "interrupter mindset" to an "entertainment mindset." For the agency creative teams, this shift is extremely liberating; the expanded format lets them flex their creative muscles to a much greater extent. A terrific recent example of this is the gorgeous 2-minute Chrysler "Imported from Detroit" spot with Eminem that aired during the Super Bowl (already with 4.5 million YouTube views). It feels totally different than any car ad and much more like a short film.
Categories: Branded Entertainment, Social Media
Topics: Sharethrough
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Sharethrough Raises $5 Million For Branded Content To Go Social
Sharethrough, a social video advertising network, is announcing this morning that it has raised a $5 million Series A round led by North Bridge Venture Partners and Floodgate. Co-founder and CEO Dan Greenberg brought me up to speed last week on the company's strategy.
Sharethrough is focused on providing distribution in social networks for branded content. This has become an increasingly popular format for brands that want to go beyond traditional 15 and 30-second TV advertising to use
online video to create more engaging messages. Dan points out that the really hard part for these brands is actually creating an audience for their branded content. Unlike traditional TV where a certain number of TV spots or impressions are simply purchased, Dan's view is that branded content, when placed in suitable social media contexts, can generate high sharing rates and viewership.
Categories: Advertising, Branded Entertainment, Deals & Financings, Social Media, Video Sharing
Topics: Sharethrough
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