Digital Hollywood goings on
October 26, 2006

I was out at Digital Hollywood in Santa Monica this week where YouTube, viral video and social networking were definitely the stars of the show. Couldn't even fit in for Tuesday panel Hollywood Reinvented!" about Internet video.

A lot of companies were eager to talk up plans for social networking on their site, though no one seems to be launching this just yet. Here's a random, very random, rundown of some of the more interesting things I heard.

•Roo, a company that delivers video clips to sites like Verizon and newspapers across the country, says that longer video is becoming more popular. How can they tell? Last year, users spent 4-5 minutes watching a video distributed by Roo. Now users spend an average of 30 minutes watching videos. Roo CEO Rob Petty said that shows that the day for TV sitcom and movie viewing online is here. Roo doesn't yet have any deals with studios to distribute movies to its partner web sites, but plans to move in that direction in the coming months.

Petty thinks that studios will have to offer net users three different choices for watching movies online - as a pay-per-view, permanent download and for free with advertisements. Given all the heat the studios have taken from retailers Wal-Mart and Target over low download pricing (and the fact that Disney is the only studio with an iTunes deal because of its low $9.99 opening price) it seems unlikely that they'd be willing to put movies online for free. Am I wrong?

Petty sees free ad-supported streaming of films as a way to combat piracy and allow the studios to still record revenues.

•Pioneer Electronics VP Andy Parsons, also with the Blu-ray Disc Association, speaking on a high-def DVD panel said that the delay of PS3 hasn't made a difference in the format's launch. I've spoken to several Blu-ray studio backers unhappy with the delays who I'd be willing to bet would disagree with that. Just not on the record, of course...

• Bunim-Murray, producers of The Real World and lots of other reality series, is beginning to create its shows with different components for TV, the web and mobile phones to keep its young audience engaged. CEO Joey Carson said he'd like to launch a show on mobile phones and then add in a web component and eventually take it to TV. Carson says mobile is the only device his young audience has with them at all times. Not only that, on mobile, producers can see who's watching and know exactly who their audience is. Which... makes me never want to watch a show on my mobile phone. I don't need anyone knowing that I watch Laguna Beach. Which I don't anymore.

Posted by on October 26, 2006 | Comments (0)