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 ManiaTV, one of the biggest online content studios, has tried to make money in a whole host of ways, from user-generated content (which it pulled the plug on in 2007), to letting brands sponsor skins on their video players, to branded entertainment like the Wrigley-backed Stage 5 show. But the five-year-old studio is about to launch its most ambitious venture yet: it's jumping into the music business with a new show called Making the Music, which effectively seeks to take over the role long played by the music labels. The original series is focused on hip-hop producer Scoop Deville as he works on a new album—and maniaTV will get a cut of the revenues once the LP is released.
Deville, who has produced songs for artists like Snoop Dogg, will preview potential album tracks during each episode; viewers get to vote on the best beat/rapper combination and the winning track gets uploaded to the site and iTunes each week. maniaTV CEO Peter Hoskins told me the show will serve as a hybrid promotional/market research vehicle: viewer analytics will give the team a better read on the demographics of Deville's fan base, which will help him decide when and where to go on tour. The studio is also signing up brand sponsors for Making the Music, further "mitigating the down side" of being in the music business, Hoskins said. So while maniaTV has got some skin in the game—the money it invests in Deville could potentially be recouped along the way if his album flops.
I asked Hoskins about how he thought the studio would fare in with ad revenues this year, since maniaTV laid off 20 employees last year and said it would be cutting back its original series output. "There are fewer buys, but we're getting larger amounts of money on each one."
Does that mean maniaTV is squeezing out some of the smaller digital studios? "A lot of studios are going to go by the wayside," Hoskins said. "There are people that could be just as stable in this game as we are, but they're getting cut out because they don't have the scale, or the existing relationships in terms of production, distribution or advertising."
The rest of our coverage is on our CES 2009 channel
Check out the best business jobs in digital media. Go here for paidContent.org Job Board.
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 —Disney (NYSE: DIS) rebrands toon channel as Disney XD: In a push to reach school-aged (6-14) boys, the WSJ says Disney is rebranding its Toon Disney cable channel as Disney XD, and building out an accompanying Website. The new Disney XD brand aims to mesh TV, videogames, social media and online video, with original series for both the channel and the site. The first piece of IP will be Aaron Stone, an action-adventure show. The Journal says Disney is hoping to recreate the multi-platform success it has had with girl-centric franchises like Hannah Montana and High School Musical.
—WB.com readies new series Rockville, CA: TheWB.com is slated to launch Rockville, CA, a new original Web series focusing on a fictional nightclub in California, Variety reports. The show will feature scripted scenes as well as performances from real indie bands like the Kooks and Frightened Rabbit. Though only short snippets of a given band's set will run during each episode, theWB.com will post a clip of of the entire two-song performance on the site afterward. Gossip Girl and The OC creator Josh Schwartz is behind the show, which premieres March 17.
—CookieMag.com bulks up video offering: Conde Nast's CookieMag.com is beefing up its video content: adding sponsored editorial clips (advertisers TBA), as well as clips promoting the Smart Cookie Awards (which honor moms that devote time/energy to charity). The videos will showcase them at work, and readers get to vote for the mom that they feel should win $35K for her charity. Video ad firm TurnHere will produce all the videos.
—NIN frontman "leaks" concert footage to torrents : The latest digital play from Nine Inch Nails comes in the form of concert footage. Techdirt reports that NIN frontman Trent Reznor gave fans details about 400GB worth of HD concert footage that had been "leaked" to torrents in a blog post—and challenged them to find it: "If any of you could find a LINK to that footage I'll bet some enterprising fans could assemble something pretty cool," he wrote. After parting ways with longtime label Interscope last year, the band released its instrumental album "Ghosts I-IV" online, with some tracks available for free; and even uploaded parts of it to The Pirate Bay, a torrent sharing site.
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 The ABC.com episode player has delivered more than a half-billion episodes and a billion ads while ABC and Disney (NYSE: DIS) have sold "tens of millions" of episodes through iTunes, Anne Sweeney, co-chair, Disney Media Networks, and president, Disney-ABC Television Group, said during an Industry Insider session at CES this afternoon.
The numbers came along with an early Valentine to Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) (with iTunes' Eddy Cue sitting in the audience), as Sweeney talked about the value of a simple user experience after showing screenshots of the way she uses her own iPhone: "We can't just build it and hope viewers will come. ... One of the reasons so many of us have iPhones and iPods is because Apple gets this fundamental fact. The user interface is intuitive." The two companies have close ties: Steve Jobs is on the Disney board and Disney was the launch tenant in the iTunes video store. Sweeney referred back to that decision: "We upset a lot of people but it was a new way to give consumers what they wanted."
When I went back to check the iTunes video launch date, it was almost a shock to realize we're more than two years into the portable video download era. Sweeney came at it a little differently: "It's hard to believe that just three years ago we were still debating the possibility –and wisdom – of putting TV content on other platforms." What she didn't mention is that the debate continues in a variety of ways, including the Time Warner Cable-Viacom fee dispute "settled" in the wee hours of the new year without really addressing TWC's contention that online video devalues the programming delivered via cable.
Sweeney's simple message—we'll provide good content, you make it easy to find, watch and navigate—was aimed at CEA members, not financial analysts or the consumer press. Revenue was mentioned in only the vaguest terms: "What we haven't seen yet is how much content we will consume, and how much revenue we can generate from it. But all indications are that the more ways consumers have to watch content, the more their appetite for it grows. How fast and how much it grows is up to us."
—International efforts: Sweeney said they closed more than 50 new media deals abroad last year. One international example is a Disney Channel partnership with Starhub in Singapore—a linear channel, a VOD service and a mobile loop service.
The rest of our coverage is on our CES 2009 channel
Related
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
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 Online video viewing continues to surge, but the ad dollars flowing into the space still aren't scaling accordingly. Panelists at the Reinventing Advertising Conference @ CES trotted out well-worn reasons for that imbalance: lack of standard metrics; high volume of low-quality content; building the right amount of reach, etc. But Brian Terkelsen, EVP and managing director at MediaVest's connectivetissue, (pictured) avoided the hand-wringing and laid it on the line: "Advertisers aren't being aggressive enough in general—they helped grow TV to where it is now, so I think it's partly up to them to drive video. If we don't challenge the industry to do things differently, we're screwed."
BitGravity CEO Perry Wu said time was already up for many of the smaller online video development and distribution studios: "We work with hundreds of content companies and to be honest, many of them won't survive. Indie sites that have premium news or sports content and a targeted audience can prove that they're valuable to advertisers—but some of the broad, more generalized companies will have a harder time."
Even larger video publishers like cable networks are at a crossroads of sorts. Steve Ronson, A&E's EVP, Enterprises, said the company is struggling to figure out how to make enough money from porting its "premium on air content" to the Web. "Do we run outtakes? Show snippets? Do we run long form but not cream of the crop?" he said. On some levels it doesn't have a choice, since viewers clearly want to access their favorite shows online—but Ronson said getting it to the Web sans the "millions of dollars worth of TV ads" is a "troubling issue." He added that many networks were weighing the ad-supported vs. subscription model or some hybrid of the two. (And with brand advertisers cutting budgets across the board, that subscription model is looking more and more lucrative.)
The rest of our coverage is on our CES 2009 channel
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—Netflix to go hi-def, courtesy of Vizio: Netflix (NSDQ: NFLX) has struck a deal with TV and electronics company Vizio to stream movies on new Vizio TVs featuring its Connected HDTV platform—without the need for an external device. Vizio expects to ship the new sets to retailers later this year. On Sunday Netflix announced a similar deal with LG to embed its service directly onto LGs new LCD and plasma "Broadband HDTVs." Release.
—Sling Media rolls out personalized DVR service: Sling Media has introduced SlingGuide, a search technology enabling DISH Network customers to browse, search and record programs on a DVR from their PC, Mac or compatible mobile phone (such as BlackBerry and iPhone). Some other features include the ability to search shows by genre, keyword or actor, ability to search and record shows from the iPhone and iPod Touch, and a personalized interface. Beginning in spring, SlingGuide will be free to DISH Network subscribers who have compatible DVRs.
—MySpace expands to TV sets: In an effort to bring rich online content to television, the social net is launching a widget that will allow users to watch TV while surfing through friends' MySpace profiles. The application is built on the Yahoo and Intel-designed "Widget Channel" and will be embedded on Toshiba TVs as well as other brands' sets. Release.
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 CBS Interactive (NYSE: CBS) is pulling the plug on WallStrip, the comedic online financial news show it acquired less than two years ago, PEHub reported, citing an unidentified source. WallStrip hasn't produced a show since Dec. 12. That date also marks the most recent episode of CBSI broadband sister web program MobLogic, which is hosted by WallStrip alum Lindsay Campbell.
Before being acquired by CBSI in May 2007, WallStrip was viewed as a model for a successful online video show, attracting regular viewers, though it never made much revenue. Mashable points out that this was due to production costs exceeding ad revenue. Moreover, the economic slowdown coupled with revs flowing towards big media content retooled for online, are signs that there will be no resolution soon. Nevertheless, the plan, according to PEHub's source, is to "take the DNA from WallStrip and apply it" to fellow CBS property BNet, which came with the $1.8 billion acquisition of CNET early last summer. The precise details of WallStrip's DNA that would be picked over wasn't outlined.
Related
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
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 Here are two related items from the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) about efforts to offer greater connection between the web and the living room:
—Yahoo creates 'widget engine' for Samsung: Samsung and Yahoo (NSDQ: YHOO) are working on a web-based content service to be released this spring. Yahoo has created a "widget engine" for Samsung HDTVs, which will allow viewers to check out Yahoo sites like Flickr, Yahoo News and Yahoo Finance, as well as outside interactive content from USA Today, YouTube, Showtime Networks, and others. The interactive service will be available on sets sold in 13 countries including the U.S., U.K., Mexico, France, Spain and Germany. Release
—LG unveils broadband HDTVs: Yahoo's widget engine will also power LG (SEO: 066570) Electronics' NetCast Entertainment Access HDTV feature. In addition to Yahoo, LG also has deals with YouTube and Netflix (NSDQ: NFLX). Recognizing that users aren't going to jettison their PCs entirely, consumers will also be able to connect their NetCast-equipped HDTVs into a home network to access JPEG photos or MP3 music files stored on their computer to create slide shows and listen to music on their big screen. Release
Mark Logic Digital Publishing Summit, Thursday November 6, Westin Times Square. Insight and perspective from Outsell, Gilbane, Simon & Schuster, BusinessWeek.com, more. Evening cocktail reception. Cost is complimentary. Register now!
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JP Morgan may be forecasting slower growth for online video ads, but it looks like VCs are still feeling good about the format ... One True Media, the CA-based firm behind the self-serve SpotMixer video ad platform, has picked up $9 million in a second round of funding. DAG Ventures led the round, along with previous backer Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and an investment from NTT Finance.
The firm plans to use the money to help scale out SpotMixer, which is currently used by Yellowbook, YouTube and Google (NSDQ: GOOG) AdWords, but there are a host of well-funded competitors that provide similar, but not identical services: Overlay.TV picked up a $3.8 million second round in December and Blip.tv got $5.2 million in October to help develop new ad technology.
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Mark Logic Digital Publishing Summit, Thursday November 6, Westin Times Square. Insight and perspective from Outsell, Gilbane, Simon & Schuster, BusinessWeek.com, more. Evening cocktail reception. Cost is complimentary. Register now!
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—Peer39's semantic ad net bites the dust: Peer39 has decided to close its "Semantic Ad Network" and laid off its four-person sales staff as it hopes to focus more on the technology side of its business. As opposed to running a network of sites, the New York- and Israel-based company just wants to offer tools that lets publishers, ad agencies and other clients identify the content on a particular site and place a related ad. Despite the job cuts now, the 50-person Peer39 still plans add another 10 or 20 staffers by the end of '09.
—Blinkx unveils new ad unit, the "Un-roll": Video search engine blinkx rolled out a new ad unit called the "Un-roll," a pre-roll/overlay hybrid. Advertisers can choose to include a link or other call-to-action at the end, but the idea is to keep viewers engaged throughout the entire clip instead of making them sit through an ad at the start—and risk having them click away.
—Brands still trying to figure this "Twitter thing" out: Much has been made this past year about Twitter as the next great social net marketing tool. Brands are flocking to it, but they still can't figure out if it's purpose is best for marketing, customer relationship or just PR. For one thing, some companies' established "Twitter stars," like Ford Motors' digital guru Scott Monty, are still keeping most of his tweets about himself. "Nobody wants to have a conversation with a car unless it's Knight Rider. I hope I am able to imbue some kind of personality through these accounts."
—Pepsi expanding digital ad efforts in China: The global economic meltdown is not stopping Pepsi from ramping up its digital ad plans for China, including plans to spend $1 billion across all media there. The soft drink marketer recently switched its account to Omnicom'sTribal DDB from WPP's Agenda unit, which is based in China. Pepsi has had digital campaigns for its flagship and 7Up brands, but will expand its online and mobile initiatives for less well-known drinks like Miranda. Pepsi's stepped up China focus doesn't mean it's forgotten about the U.S. market, as Brandweek notes that the marketer began running a new ads on its YouTube channel and launched a microsite called RefreshEverything.com.
Social Media Deals Report: This 199-page report, filled with charts and data, examines the categories, number and size of VC and M&A deal in social media from 2007 through 2008. Visit the ContentNext Reports page
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—Roku player gets Amazon VOD: Owners of the Roku "Netflix (NSDQ: NFLX) Player" will soon also be able to download content from Amazon's VOD service. The deal adds more than 40,000 movies and TV shows to the library currently available via Netflix—though Amazon's content is on a pay-per-view model as opposed to Netflix' subscription. Crave poses the question of whether Roku will start rebranding its boxes to reflect the variety of content sources available, though it may face some opposition since Netflix invested $6 million for an undisclosed stake in the company last year.
—Online video viewing up 34 percent in November: The latest comScore (NSDQ: SCOR) Video Metrix stats found that Americans watched 12.7 billion videos in November 2008—up 34 percent year-over-year. Users watched 87 videos on average, amounting to about 276 minutes per viewer. Google (NSDQ: GOOG) (with YouTube) was the leader by a landslide, with 40 percent of all videos viewed. Fox Interactive Media (NYSE: NWS) came in a distant second place and Viacom (NYSE: VIA) Digital came in third, with 3.5 percent and 2.6 percent of video views, respectively. Hulu retained its sixth place spot, with just 1.8 percent of total video views—though it took the top spot in terms of video duration. The average duration for clips viewed overall was 3 minutes, but users watched clips that were nearly 12 minutes long on Hulu. Release.
—DECA pulls plug on Bush League : DECA has pulled the plug on its guy-centric online series Bush League, NewTeeVee reports. The BushLeague.tv site is still up, though new content hasn't been posted since December 18. The Santa Monica-based digital entertainment studio still has a number of original series left in its roster for 2009, including teen video brand and site Smosh (which it took an undisclosed stake in, back in October) and the mommy-blogger talk show Momversation, among others.
—RipCode picks up $12.5 million third round: Video transcoding firm RipCode has picked up $12.5 million in a third round of funding—bringing its total raise since 2006 to $32 million. Granite Ventures led the round; previous backers Hunt Ventures, El Dorado Ventures, Vesbridge Partners and ATA Ventures also participated. The company signed a deal with MySpace last month to allow the social net's users to stream video to their phones, highlighting a key feature of RipCode's technology: it transcodes the clips on demand, eliminating the need to store an entire video library in multiple mobile formats. Of course, the tech works on Web video too, but the big opportunity is in the mobile sector. Find out more at our sister site mocoNews.net.
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Mark Logic Digital Publishing Summit, Thursday November 6, Westin Times Square. Insight and perspective from Outsell, Gilbane, Simon & Schuster, BusinessWeek.com, more. Evening cocktail reception. Cost is complimentary. Register now!
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—Hulu's 2009 resolutions : Hulu's plans for 2009 don't include fundraising or downloads, CEO Jason Kilar told Mediapost. Instead, the NBCU-News Corp (NYSE: NWS) JV will focus on developing better video search and ad targeting technology, personalization features like recommendation apps, and global expansion. Why skip downloads? Kilar explains: "The notion of downloading heavy files to a device that takes up a lot of space is something that had value several years ago when we were not connected all the time. So, the bigger opportunity for users is to focus on the streaming part of the business." He also said that Hulu did not need to raise additional capital.
—CBS Interactive to launch college basketball-themed series "Heckle-U" : CBS Interactive (NYSE: CBS) will roll out "Heckle-U," its latest original web series, in February. Tied to the network's NCAA March Madness coverage, the 10-episode series centers on a slacker who takes pleasure in heckling players during games. The show, sponsored by P&G through product placement, stars Tom Arnold and "Punk'd" actor Owen Benjamin, according to THR. "Heckle-U" is produced by Nu Media Studios, the digital production house and management company launched by former ICM digital head Michael Kernan.
—Sports leagues struggling with pirated game streams : Professional sports leagues once focused on keeping pirated photos and game clips offline, but the problem has shifted to streams of whole games, the NYT reports. Complicated deals between the leagues and the cable and broadcast networks often keep specific games off the air, leaving fans in the dark—and they're increasingly turning to pirated streams to catch them. "We never felt that the jewel in our crown, the live games, would be vulnerable," Ayala Deutsch, the NBA's SVP and chief IP counsel told the Times. Execs from sports leagues around the world recently met at the NBA's NY offices to discuss live game anti-piracy measures, including ideas like brokering legitimate deals with P2P streaming services (which the NBA has done in China). But don't expect to see the leagues going after individual stream uploaders. MLB.com general counsel Michael J. Mellis told the Times: "I'd like to think we've learned some cautionary lessons from the music industry. What is the utility in suing individuals who are part of a larger chain of events?"
Mark Logic Digital Publishing Summit, Thursday November 6, Westin Times Square. Insight and perspective from Outsell, Gilbane, Simon & Schuster, BusinessWeek.com, more. Evening cocktail reception. Cost is complimentary. Register now!
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Time Warner (NYSE: TWX) Cable CEO Glenn Britt and Viacom (NYSE: VIA) CEO Philippe Dauman are both standing by as negotiations continue in a fee dispute that could result in MTV Networks being pulled from TWC at midnight. As you might imagine, it's all very he said-he said at this point: a TWC spokesman says the amount being sought by Viacom is a 15 percent increase, Viacom says 12 percent; TWC says it's willing to grant a modest increase in keeping with the times, Viacom skips over that part; TWC says negotiating, Viacom says TWC unwilling to meet; TWC admits to a monthly $3 increase going into effect Jan. 1 in Los Angeles but says Viacom is wrong about similar increases in other markets; TWC calls the fee demand egregious, Viacom distributes an analyst report saying MTVN is undervalued; and so on.
They also disagree on one other key aspect—well, key, as far as we're concerned: the role web access should play. TWC spokesman Alex Dudley, who says the operator pays "hundreds of millions" already to carry MTVN, offered a comparison that didn't work for me when we first started to talk this afternoon, suggesting free access to MTVN shows online was akin to paying $50 for sneakers in a store that you can get for free if you buy online. Not quite. But his real contention is one that TWC and other cable operators have been pushing since video went online: multiple access points makes content less valuable. "What we're saying is, take the same content that you want us to pay $39 million more for next year and you want to give it online for free, what's our incentive to pay for it?" He admits it's not a major issue now but that as delivery methods merge and it becomes easier for the average person to get their favorite shows delivered via broadband to TV, "don't you think that devalues the content to us? It's one of the factors that has to be taken into account."
Viacom spokesman Jeremy Zweig calls web access "a fundamentally weird argument for them to make" given that ratings are up for Comedy Central, home of readily available The Daily Show, for instance, while other networks with popular content streamed online also show no signs of damage. "They've called out streaming of Daily Show, Colbert and South Park as somehow being harmful to them. Fact is that Comedy Central just had its best television ratings month ever last month, and its best Q3 ever last quarter, and was the #1 basic cable network in prime for Men 18-24."
TWC's Dudley admits that may be the case but says that only measures subscribers—not the people shifting away or staying from TWC because they can get their video fix online. "That's the revenue loss for us." At the same time, though, TWC is making money from broadband subscribers who want fast speeds, in part so they can watch video online; the largest number get both video and data from the operator, which means that come tomorrow, if the shows are yanked from cable, some TWC subscribers will still be watching MTVN—and they could be doing it on fellow cable operator Comcast's Fancast portal.
The people commenting on our earlier post about the dispute aren't talking about switching to broadband for their viewing although some mention switching to satellite. That's because the number of people for whom broadband-only video is a real lifestyle option is still relatively small. Yes, it's doable but it takes a lot more thought and effort than paying that monthly bill and turning on the TV.
Mark Logic Digital Publishing Summit, Thursday November 6, Westin Times Square. Insight and perspective from Outsell, Gilbane, Simon & Schuster, BusinessWeek.com, more. Evening cocktail reception. Cost is complimentary. Register now!
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Doing what they can to survive the tougher economy, websites are starting to relax the rules they place on the size and formats of the ads they run. A WSJ piece doesn't find anyone admitting to resorting to the "unthinkable" (e.g., spyware). The changes spotted at major sites are more subtle and restrained than that. And they mostly represent a branching out of existing efforts, such as video sites like Veoh and Dailymotion making more use of pre-roll. In two other cases that have been evolving over the past several months, WSJ.com and NYTimes.com have been offering more online real estate space to web advertisers. Still, to listen to these and other web publishers and online ad sellers, the perilous economic situation has nothing—or perhaps very little, really—to do with these expanded ad moves.
—Plain banners won't cut it: These times cry out for more than just a simple banner ad. Considering that display was already looking sluggish even before the global financial meltdown this fall, the miserable economy surely makes it easier for web publishers and marketers to push the ad format's envelope a bit, even if it appears to rank as a poor excuse for doing so. For example, this summer saw the introduction of those Mac ads across the top of the NYT's homepage. The new year will likely bring more "welcome page" greetings from advertisers on the NYTimes.com and other publishers' pages. More interesting were the ads promoting the theatrical release of The Incredible Hulk on Break.com
—Mixing editorial and ads: There's nothing new about ads that closely resemble posts on a given blog. But some, like online celebrity gossip PerezHilton are going much further in blurring the line between editorial and marketing. For example, Perez has appeared in a video on his site promoting the romantic comedy Bride Wars. Still, considering that Perez doesn't operate a hard news site, and he's become something of a celebrity in his own right, his audience probably won't hold it against him as long as his shilling is entertaining. Henry Copeland, the CEO of Blogads.com, which helps sell ads on PerezHilton and others, calls the move "absolutely crucial," again, not because of the economy necessarily, "but because there are so many billions of impressions out there."
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About those plans YouTube has to show the music labels who has the upper hand, think of it like a poker game: when you're not the only game in town, it makes it easier for players to walk away from the table. Conversely, when you think your game is the only game in town that matters, you're not going to fold just keep them playing. That's why when a YouTube user tries to watch My Chemical Romance's Teenagers today, the legit versions won't be available. Ditto for user-gen content. That goes for all of the content once licensed by Warner Music Group (NYSE: WMG) to YouTube. WMG was the first major in when the site needed legitimacy with the music industry and Warner wanted to show it was adapting to digital. Now that actually making money is the bigger issue, WMG is the first of the major labels to pull out following the expiration of its deal and the failure to come to terms on a new version. I'm told it was WMG's decision to leave; Peter Kafka was told by a source it was Google's decision. Maybe it's just MAD—mutually assured destruction.
YouTube drew first blood on its company blog, listing its many efforts to accommodate the music industry: "despite our constant efforts, it isn't always possible to maintain these innovative agreements. Sometimes, if we can't reach acceptable business terms, we must part ways with successful partners. For example, you may notice videos that contain music owned by Warner Music Group being blocked from the site. Don't worry - if you receive a takedown notification, you will have a couple of options to choose from in order to keep your original video creations up. Check out Audioswap, a one-of-a-kind library of pre-cleared music ready for you to drop into your videos any time."
WMG's statement: "We are working actively to find a resolution with YouTube that would enable the return of our artists' content to the site. Until then, we simply cannot accept terms that fail to appropriately and fairly compensate recording artists, songwriters, labels and publishers for the value they provide."
Both sides think they have the winning hand. YouTube has a massive audience that won't take kindly to takedown notices and lack of access. WMG's music video is widely available through MySpace Music (it holds equity in the News Corp (NYSE: NWS) JV), Hulu, etc., as is licensing for user-generated content. Fans will have to go elsewhere while WMG resumes takedown whack-a-mole at YouTube, at least, that's what WMG is counting on.
It all conjures visions of NBC Universal's decision to walk away from Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and iTunes last year. Whatever you think of the strategy and whether the resolution was a win for NBCU, it's the kind of move someone can afford to take when the pot is small. Will the others follow?
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 —SNL's Samberg chooses YouTube: With nearly 9 million views since being posted December 6, Andy Samberg's "Jizz in My Pants" is the most watched clip on YouTube this month. More noteworthy is that viewers have been able to access the music video-style Saturday Night Live skit on YouTube at all. NBC is meticulous about keeping unauthorized clips off the site in favor of its own video properties, but since Samberg and his production company The Lonely Island own the rights to the clip, they chose to serve it to YouTube's larger audience. CNET says Samberg's decision "raised some eyebrows," but that it makes sense because he's trying to expose the skit to the widest possible audience. While NBC.com and Hulu have reach, neither site can top YouTube in terms of mass appeal. Samberg also has a record deal with Universal Music Group in the works, and given YouTube's success in terms of music promotion, building a loyal fan base on the site is a no-brainer.
—People like streaming video at work: Now there's a shock ... Nielsen Online's latest VideoCensus report found that, in October, 65 percent of online video viewers watched at least one clip from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on a weekday, the most popular daypart for streaming. Nearly all of those work-week streamers had broadband access, a likely factor contributing to their consumption. The second most popular daypart was weekends 6 a.m. - 8 p.m., with 51 percent of viewers watching at least one clip. 49 percent of people streamed video on weeknights from 5 p.m. - 8 p.m.; while just 43 percent of viewers watched Web clips during TV's traditional primetime: 8 p.m. - 11 p.m. Release.
—Machinima.com hooks writers in for 15 new shows: Online gaming site Machinima.com got $3.85 million in funding in November, and it will be using some of that cash to develop 15 new shows. Kotaku says writers from TV shows like The Simpsons, Family Guy, King of Queens and The Fresh Prince of Bel Air have signed on to craft scripts for the shorts, which will be part of "The Machinima Comedy Lab." No date has been set for the first pilot.
More after the jump. —Current and Rotten partner in series: And another original series play ... Al Gore-backed media company Current will partner with IGN's Rotten Tomatoes to launch a weekly show that digs into the latest movie news. NewTeeVee says the show will incorporate the crowd-sourced reviews and commentary that Rotten Tomatoes has become known for, though no word yet on when it will launch.
—NBC, CBS attract ad dollars with original Web series: Develop original online series or push existing shows to the Web? That's just one of the questions the tanking economy is forcing broadcast networks to ask themselves, according to TV Week. But a steady stream of ad dollars has made the original content route a lucrative one for NBC and CBS (NYSE: CBS) in particular. NBC already has nine original Web series planned for 2009, four of which have brand sponsors on board. It will pitch the remaining five to advertisers starting in January. CBS has two, including a companion show for its "Harper's Island" horror series. In contrast, ABC and the CW have scaled back on developing new online shows in favor of creating short clips that are tied to their TV existing series, or just porting said series to the Web.
Check out the best business jobs in digital media. Go here for paidContent.org Job Board.
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