Viral Videos Are in the Toilet

Thanks to David Meerman Scott and John Wall and Christopher Penn from Marketing Over Coffee for this Viral Video gem.

It's a video that shows the true power of addictive videos with an ad for a Swedish Self-Cleaning Toilet with 2 million views.

Jimmy Hutcheson Ego TV

Jimmy Hutcheson Ego TV from 1timstreet on Vimeo.

From NATPE's LATV Fest in Hollywood, Jimmy Hutcheson of Ego TV talks about the different ways he is making money with online video and celebrities like Tom Arnold.

Do You Kow Anyone Upset About Oliver Stone's New Movie W?

The Red State Update guys get a little upset as they take a look at Oliver Stone's new movie "W." and Best Animal in a Motion Picture, and Survivor and auditioning...

Red State Update is a great example of online video incubation. Just two guys on camera pumping out a lot of videos. Some of the bits work, some don't but overall there are characters, stories and back stories that are developing.

I think Red State Update has a lot of potential and with a little more punchy writing and a little editing to bring it's run time down it could be a new Reno 911. It just needs some Executive Producing and I think it could be a breakout hit.

They are getting Press.

Hey Jackie and Dunlap are you guys making any money with your songs and answering machine messages?

Disney Channel and YouTube?

Disney Channel stars Demi Lovato and Selena Gomez are climbing the video view's chart today with a video they posted back on March 12th. The video now has almost 4 Million views and not only does it have the Disney stars of Wizards of Waverly Place and The Disney Channel Original Movie Camp Rock it also has Selena Gomez giving a "shout out to her Boyz" the Power Rangers who's T-Shirt she shows off in this video.

Keep in mind Selena and her "Boyz" the Power Rangers both work for Disney.

I wonder how many of these backwards printed Power Ranger T-Shirts have been sold off of the 4 Million views of this viral video and if YouTube is getting a cut?

Why Do Brick Walls Get In Your Way?

NewTeeVee's Liz Shannon Miller posted Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch's Last Lecture Lecturer after he died today. He was 47.

If you are at all interested in finding happiness and overcoming life's "brick walls" that get in your way, I suggest you carve out an hour and watch this video as soon as you can.

It has the potential to help you achieve your goals.

The Cut down version of this Lecture has had over 3 Million views on YouTube.

Randy Pausch is gone but he has given us all something extremely valuable in his Last Lecture Lecturer.

What's the Biggest Online Video Success?

Yesterday Journalist Daisy Whitney asked her Twitter followers, "What do you think is the best example of a business, brand or marketer that used web video to great success to grow the business?"

I replied, "Will It Blend."

Will It Blend? is the best example of how a small company without an ad agency can have an impact on brand awareness and on their bottom line.

I've blogged about Will It Bled before but I think it merits repeating.

Will It Blend is a great model for content creators to examine.

Blendtech makes great blenders. They create online videos that showcases how strong their blenders are. People watch their Will It Blend videos and Blendtech sells more blenders. Keep in mind, it wouldn't work if Blendtech made crappy blenders or if their videos were not fun to watch.

For more on the Will It Blend story you should attend the The New Media Expo where you will get the whole story about Will It Blend.

"That's all nice for Blendtech Tim but I don't make high quality blenders. I just make videos."

Well, imagine if you had a DVD of your video content and you did an online video that promoted that DVD? Now I'm not saying to drop it in a blender.

Try this on for size, What if I made a DVD and a Pay Digital Download called French Maid TV's Official Guide to Lingerie Vol. 1 ? Then I created a French Maid TV episode called How To Buy Lingerie and had the episode be sponsored by French Maid TV's Official Guide to Lingerie Vol. 1?

Could I sell more copies of the DVD and Digital download then Will It Blend?

What if I also created a live show that could be done on a stage where the French Maids would come out and do a live performance of How To Buy Lingerie?

OK one more: What if I got the French Maids to do a live performance of How To Buy Lingerie on say Late Night TV during SWEEPS in November just before the Holidays?

Does that sound like something you think I could find a few investors to invest in?

QuickTime or Flash ? Who's Better for You?

Right now there is a war going on in online video and it's not a pretty one. It's a war between video players. Flash, QuickTime, Windows Media Player and that other one what's it called? Oh that's right Real Player.

Sure there are other video players out there but these four are real "PLAYERS" in the online video business world.

From my point of view here are the simple benefits of the top four players.

Flash seems to have the biggest distribution (Installed on over 850 million Internet-connected desktops and mobile devices) being the player of choice for YouTube but more than that Flash is also the player of choice for online video Ad Networks because they can show their advertiser real time reports. The quality of flash is great if it's used at it's highest quality but to save bandwidth most sites don't use Flash at a high quality but it's use is getting better but not the best thing to watch on your wide screen HDTV.

QuickTime delivers high quality video and works on the iPods, Apple TV and yes with video sharing apps like mDialog you can even send video to the 3G iPhone.(Disclosure: mDialog is one of my sponsors) You can use QuickTime in your RSS feed and keep your subscribers iTunes full of your latest content. The big problem with QuickTime is that advertising networks don't use it because they don't have real time tracking of the views os RSS feeds.

Windows Media Player is well deployed on PCs and works really well on the Zune but I don't know of (and please correct me if I'm wrong) any ad networks using Windows Media Player to deliver advertising. If I was doing a sponsors episode of a product that was only targeted at PC owners I would definitely use Windows Media Player to distribute my videos.

As far as Real Player goes, I'm at a loss. From what I can tell Real Player is good for partnering with big corporations on "speacial" video projects that take advantage of Real Players network of subscribers. Like getting to watch all the BTS on CBS's Big Brother. Please feel free to help me out on this one. I know there is something great about Real Player but I forgot what it is.

Other videos players are in the mix like Silverlight which is Microsoft's competitor to Flash but I have yet to see traction with these other players.

As a content producer what video players do you like and why do you like them?

If the Pen is Mightier Than The Sword Then The Video Camera is...

Using video cameras, Palestinians shoot back

July 23: An Israeli human rights organization gave out 100 small video cameras to Palestinians to document abuses at the hands of Jewish settlers. NBC's Martin Fletcher reports. NBC (Nightly News)

Nice reporting Martin.

Who Would Your Top 10 Internet Celebrities Be?

I missed EconCeleb conference today because of a shoot French Maid TV was doing with MTV but it looks like it was a fun conference.

From FunnyOrDie to Tila Tequila, celebrities are stepping up their online game. In recognition of these efforts, EconCeleb presented the Econoclast10.

"This top 10 list reflects the best of what the celebrities are bringing to us not on camera, but online. Whether they’re blogging, entertaining, investing or, well, updating their MySpace profiles, celebrities are finding new ways to reach their fans in the digital space."

It's a nice list but I don't see Kevin Rose there. Who would your top 10 celebrities be?

The Move From Maker To Merchant: Taking Your Podcast From Hobby To Business In 27 Days

The New Media Expo is the world's most popular convention for podcasters, bloggers and online content creators. If you are serious about online video it's an event that you shouldn't miss.

This is part of a weekly blog series that highlights a session or event happening at New Media Expo - hopefully enticing you to come join us online video content creators in Las Vegas August 14-16, 2008.

I'm a pretty laid back guy but I do get pretty excited about online video and all the opportunities social media brings in creating your own brands and making enough money to work for yourself on the Internet. Another person who is excited all the time and spends way more time studying how to make money on the Internet than I do is Paul Colligan. Paul and I have traded some consulting services so I know first hand that Mr. Colligan knows many more ways to make money with online video than I do and if you want to learn about his tricks of the trade I suggest you check out his session in Las Vegas.

The Move From Maker To Merchant: Taking Your Podcast From Hobby To Business In 27 Days
Track 3: The Business of New Media
Instructor: Paul Colligan of Colligan.com, Inc.
Description: There is real money to be made in new media. Martyrs and mavens from the bleeding edge have paved paths worth deep examination for anyone looking to pay bills (and more) with their content. Join Paul Colligan in this session as he completes the third part of his three-year series on the very real business of podcasting and new media profits. Learn exactly how to build on the successful models others have already designed. Discover a simple 27-day plan for content monetization that can be followed by anyone with valuable content and a willingness to learn. Leave the session with an outline for what comes next for you! Paul is well-known for his time-tested approach to content monetization. If you want to leave the expo with a plan for making money with your media, don't miss this exciting session!

The New Media Expo conference web site has outstanding resources including the Official New Media Expo podcast and various podcaster templates and documents, and links to all the speakers' blogs.

You might also want to Book your hotel now and get your free Expo Hall Pass before the price increase.

Will Google Shut Down the Beer Drinking Diggnation?

If the rumors are true and if Digg.com is being acquired by Google will one of my favorite online videos, the popular beer drinking video podcast Diggnation be shut down?

Did You Know About the Big Podcasting Divorce at iTunes?

I just noticed the big break up at
iTunes Podcasts between Video and Audio Podcasts.

This is a very interesting move that I think will make both video and audio content creators happy.

Happy? Yep. Happy.

There are many audio content creators who use to be on top of the iTunes charts until the likes of Dr. Tiki, Johnny Johnny and the very sexy La La hit the iTunes Store with Tiki Bar TV. Since then other video scum like Ask A Ninja, Good Night Burbank, Happy Tree Friends and even that silly video show with those French Maids that explain products have derailed the exposure audio podcasts have in being listed as the most popular on iTunes.

Similarly independent video content has had to compete with big name brands of audio content being distributed as audio podcasts. Now that iTunes is separating audio and video things might look better for independent video producers as well.

When Do You Want Someone to Give You "The Business?"

You want someone to give you "The Business" when that person is the Los Angeles Bureau Chief for Advertising Age, former staff reporter at Variety/Daily Variety and writer for Premiere, The New York Times Magazine, Los Angeles, Entertainment Weekly and Us Weekly as well as an occasional contributor to the daily public radio business program, Marketplace and they are the host of NPR's, titled, "The Business", Claude Brodesser-Akner.

Claude's quick wit and sharp, "tongue in cheek" personality shine through in his audio program / podcast called the The Business and have made me a big fan.

According to NPR's own website, "The Business looks deep inside the business of entertainment. A half-hour of thoughtful and irreverent dialogue with Hollywood's top deal-makers, filmmakers, moguls, artists and agents, The Business will clue you in on who's making pop culture pop and what's keeping Hollywood's Blackberries juicy."

Beyond all the general Hollywood news and information Claude manages to stay on top of the cutting edge and discover as well as expose new business models that many of you should pay attention to like his epsiode that involves the two-way street between American television and British telly where he talks to TV producer extraordinaire Caryn Mandabach ("That '70s Show","Cosby","3rd Rock from the Sun" and many more) about her dealings across the pond.

In this episode Claude unearths how Mandabach is developing, piloting and launching TV shows in the UK's Independent Television community that get incubated for very little money as table reads, stage performances and radio shows before they make it to TV. The best part about her TV development model is that she owns the rights to her shows and can then license them to the good old US of A. Something you should pay very close attention to!

In listening to Caryn Mandabach talk about the British TV community I can't help but think of what we are all doing in our little Online Video community and how we are all helping each other incubated new shows.

I was lucky enough to meet Claude Brodesser-Akner last week at Advertising Age's Madison + Vine conference and I look forward to Claude giving me more of "The Business" very soon.

To add The Business to your iTunes visit iTunes Podcasts

Are There any Negative Revues of The Dark Night ?

Sure there are a few negative reviews of The Dark Night but most people seem to being going Gah Gah over Heath Ledger's performance and some are saying Oscar worthy.

All of that is fine and dandy but what I like is the extremely long hold on Heath Ledger in the middle of the above video.

For those of you not yet familiar with the dark arts of viral videos, the exact mathematical middle frame of your YouTube video is the one that YouTube will use as the little picture that represents your video on Youtube or what we call a video thumbnail.

How do you get to select the video thumbnail photo for your YouTube Video?

If you want to make sure you have yourself covered and know that you are going to have the perfect picture selected for your little YouTube photo make sure you stay on an emotionally engaging image in the middle of your video and you will get the YouTube video thumbnail that you want.

No Joke. Just look at the Joker.

Extending and Building the Brand of Your Show to Generate a Livable Income

The New Media Expo is the world's most popular convention for podcasters, bloggers and online content creators. If you are serious about online video it's an event that you shouldn't miss.

This is part of a weekly blog series that highlights a session or event happening at New Media Expo - hopefully enticing you to come join us online video content creators in Las Vegas August 14-16, 2008.

Philip Hodgetts is a current day renaissance man. He is a technology guy who knows more about professional broadcast video production and post production gear than almost anyone in the world and shares his knowledge as a contributing editor on Creative Cow. (A great resource for production and post production) But the thing I like most about Phil is that you can have a conversation with him. He's a tech guy who knows how to speak to non-techies and because Phil can go back and forth he has been able to build his own brand within several different communities. If you are looking to brand new online content or brand yourself be sure and check out Phil Hodgetts' presentation.

Extending and Building the Brand of Your Show to Generate a Livable Income
Track 3: The Business of New Media
Instructor: Philip Hodgetts of Open Television Network
Description: There are many ways to leverage the personal brand build around an audio or video show, of which one is advertising. During this session Philip will be drawing on his experience in the very, very early days of podcasting, with the long-running DV Guys show, which lead to the creation of the Digital Production BuZZ. During the nearly three years he was managing editor of that show, the brand was expanded with related newsletters, news feeds and other ways of drawing attention to the show. You'll learn how to duplicate his success by offering other products alongside your content that will help grow your audience and bring in additional income. You'll also learn how Philip affiliated with CMP, later NewBay Media, and how you can do the same with partnerships that will help you build your brand quickly. The session will include the real world income, expenditure and profit that was made in 20 hours a week. You'll also see how Philip sold the show for a nice profit and how you can do the same with your show!

You might also want to Book your hotel now and get your free Expo Hall Pass before the price increase.

Express LLC Sponsors Online Video Reality Series for Vogue

Super Blogger / Super Vlogger extraordinaire Steve Garfield sent me a link to this story and video By RACHEL DODES of the Wall Street Journal: "Express LLC, a clothing retailer that is trying to court young fashionistas, paid in the "low seven figures" to be the show's lead sponsor..." of Model.Live for Vogue.

Thanks for the link Steve!

Who's Going to be the First Big Financial Internet Video Hit?

Yesterday's Ad Age Madison + Vine conference was an incredible line up of traditional media talent Al Michaels, Magic Johnson, Barry Sonnenfeld, Ben Silverman, Darren Star, Dana Walden and the top Internet Blogger Arianna Huffington. Other than Arianna and Ad Age I didn't run into any social media people. Maybe they were all working on their future Internet video success.

Yesterday was great from a content standpoint and I tweeted as much as a could on my model 1 iPhone until @adage tracked me down and gave me a WiFi passcode but by that time the conference was almost over. The content was great but the biggest take-away I got was that the light bulbs are starting to come on with traditional media and they are slowly figuring out ways to monetize the Internet. I expect they will continue to baby step into the Internet until someone makes a lot of money and then they will try to copy the success of that someone. But who will that someone be?

Seth MacFarlane?

Will it be Joss Whedon?

Or will it be someone like Doug Bressler?

Why Would You Care About Video Views if You Are Selling on iTunes?

Well I'll be...

As of 11:15 AM PST Dr. Horrible's is the number one TV Show on iTunes'"Top TV Seasons."

Even though it's FREE on Hulu and at drhorrible.com people are buying it on iTunes for $1.99.

I was hopping that Dr. Horrible would change things for the Independent online content creator but it hasn't. We can't sell our videos on iTunes the way Joss Whedon can so nothing has changed... yet.

When Will Madison Ave Meet Digital Vine?

Tomorrow at the Beverly Hills Hotel there will be a very special event put on by Ad Age called Madison and Vine. It's an event that has been taking place for several years where Madison Avenue Advertising people and Hollywood types come together but for some reason it hasn't yet cross pollinated yet into the world of social media. (There are only Two of us on Upcoming that are going and I can't find it listed on Facebook.)

That said, Tomorrow I will be a bee.

Will Star Power Save Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog?

I watched ACT 1 of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog this morning and as the opening title played I was really excited. When I saw Neil Patrick Harris dressed in a white lab coat and goggles standing in his well art directed laboratory I was cheering inside. Dr. Horrible looks so cool the video looks like film and the lighting is far beyond what I could dream of with French Maid TV. But when Dr. Horrible talks to camera for 3 minutes and 51 seconds with expository dialog all I can think about is, if this wasn't Neil Patrick Harris and if Felicia Day wasn't in this and if Joss Whedon hadn't written, directed and produced this I would have been on to another video 3 minutes and 20 seconds ago.

Right now my heart is broken. I so want to like Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog but a 13 minute video that takes 3 and a half minutes to get into?

Joss what were you thinking? Am I missing something here?

I want Dr. Horrible to work in the worst way and it hurts me to write this but if there were no stars and no star power Dr. Horrible wouldn't have a chance on the Internet. Even with the great performances of Neil Patrick Harris and Felicia Day I have my doubts.

If you are trying to launch an online series without stars you have to grab your audience with something emotional right away. Dr. Horrible takes awhile and that makes me worry.

I'm into the story of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog but I have a vested interest. I'll keep watching Dr. Horrible and keep my finger's crossed that it takes off but based on ACT 1 of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog I'm really not expecting big numbers.

I hope I'm wrong.


Lower your head, watch your step and try to enjoy the rest of your day on the Internet.

I Started a Dot Com and All I Got Was a T-Shirt

What's Your "Dot Com" Story?

Wired has posted a phone interview with Josh Hartnett about his new movie titled, August.

"August tracks the rise and fall of a cocky internet startup boss who watches his company implode during 2001's dot-com meltdown. Set in Manhattan a few weeks before 9/11, the movie follows brash CEO Tom Sterling as he pitches venture capitalists on the mystique of his LandShark company."

I think I'll be seeing this movie. It reminds me of my younger days and how my friends were trying to convince me to raise money for a DOT Com. I kept asking them, "What would this company do?" and they kept telling me, "It doesn't matter, just get the money - Everyone is doing it." I did start a Dot Com but I never tried to raise the money I just got new friends.

Back then the whole raising money thing seemed like Hocus Pocus to me and I find it very ironic that today I will be having lunch with a magician to talk about French Maid Magic and tonight I will be going to the Magicopolis Theater of Illusion for Mixergy's How to Raise Venture Capital for Your Startup.

Will there be any Hocus Pocus in this go round of Internet fund raising? Well, I think to raise money now you have to have a real business model up and working in order to get money and that's a lot easier to do than it was in 2001.

I hope to see you there tonight and if you see me there be sure to stop me cause I would love to hear your Dot Com story.

Will Joss Whedon Be The Mad Scientist Who Kills TV?

Teaser from Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog on Vimeo.

Joss Whedon has made a lot of hours of television. Joss Whedon has made a lot of money from making a lot of hours of television. Now Joss Whedon has the potential to be the guy, the person, the Mad Scientist Who Kills Television. Or at least turn an online video into a household name.

In case you don't know and/or you are too lazy to Google Joss Whedon, he's the guy who brought us the TV shows Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Angel and Firefly and he happen to write a few small motion pictures like Toy Story and Alien: Resurrection. Now Joss is launching a web series Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog. Will it be a hit? I sure hope so.

For years all of us independent content creators have been doing our thing trying to make a go of the online video game and a few of us have made a little bit of money but none of us have become household names. None of our shows are as popular as Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

Now, I like to think of myself as the guy who saved Buffy The Vampire Slayer. I was a young writer/producer/director new to Hollywood and Warner Bros. ask me to work on an "Upfront" presentation (a trailer for a TV Show that networks show to advertisers to get advertising dollars in advance) for a new show that they were thinking of putting on The WB. I watched the pilot episode and except for the fat girl that played Willow I loved it. I loved the fact that it had the TastersChoice® Coffee guy in it. I loved the fact that it had funny hot sexy girls in it. I loved everything about it especially the humor in it, like when just after bumping into Buffy and spilling her stuff, Zander picks something up off the ground and mutters to Buffy, "Hey, You forgot your stake." and then holds up a wooded stake that Buffy dropped. Because I loved the show so much I worked really hard on the presentation coming up with a trailer that used dialog from the pilot episode itself to explain what the series would be about instead of using a voice over narration to explain where the series would go after the pilot episode.

I turned in my cut to the guys at The WB and they loved it but they didn't like the pilot of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. They didn't get it. They thought it was cheesy and they made me change the name of the show in the presentation to "Slayer" because they thought it was tougher. I begged them not to do it. But they did it anyway and I heard that when they showed it to Joss Whedon and he flipped out and hated it.

I told them how cool the show was but they said they weren't going to put it on the schedule that Fall and they didn't. They told me they really liked the trailer I had created and if it tested well they might put "Slayer" on as a mid-season replacement in the Spring. I was depressed. I thought they just didn't get it but come Spring Buffy the Vampire Slayer made it on air not "Slayer."

Joss Whedon fought with The WB to keep the name of the show from becoming "Slayer" and of course he was the one that really saved Buffy The Vampire Slayer but I'll tell the kids at UCLA, USC and any other schools I get to speak at that I was the guy who saved Buffy The Vampire Slayer just cause it makes me feel good.

Oh, I almost forgot. I think I once got a call from Joss Whedon but he didn't say who he was when he called. After the pilot of Buffy The Vampire Slayer aired and did really well I sent a congratulation package to Joss Whedon. It had a note that read, "Hey You Forget Your Steak." and instead of it being a "Stake" I sent a "Steak." a raw steak.

Shortly after sending it my phone rang - and no one ever called me - A guy asked me a lot of questions about what my company did and then said, "Thanks" without identifying himself and hung up. In hindsight it was a pretty stupid idea to send a raw blood steak to a guy who didn't know me but at the time it just seemed pretty clever.

From the looks of the trailer of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (with a voice over narration that sounds a lot like the guy who called me on the phone many years ago) looks pretty clever but I think some people are going to think it looks cheesy and they just won't get it. I do however think that there will be a lot of people who will love Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and based on the story I've just shared with you and the fact the Joss Whedon doesn't need to get any TV Network's approval to launch Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog I think Joss Whedon just may be the Mad Scientist to kill Televison or at least to make an online video series become a household word.

Lower your head, watch your step, and enjoy the rest of your day on the Internet or at least have fun checking out the best new videos on the 3G iPhone that you can find. - and let know what they are.

Did the iPhone Just Change Social Media Forever?

If Apple had released the new 3G iPhone in the evening instead of 8AM like they did this morning they would have missed a whole day of sales and media coverage but they didn't and now we are getting the best reviews of the new 3G iPhone and live updates via Twitter of people trying to find out How to fix a bricked iPhone from the new 7.7(43) iTunes Update.

At 2PM here in Old Town Pasadena the line at the Apple Store is still stretched around the block and if it had been an evening event the line would have die around Midnight. But it didn't happen that way. The line keeps going and I'm wondering if they are going to run out of new 3G iPhones.

None the less, while people have been standing in line they are sharing information about Apple products and the iPhone and had the new 3G iPhone already been out I think they would have been sharing newly posted videos on it while they were standing inline.

Apple has change the way we consume music and they are working on changing the way we consume video. Just as Twitter and Facebook are changing the way we communicate with our friends I think the new 3G iPhone will have some social media apps that will change our social behaviour once again and there will also be new ways to make money with iPhone Apps and the video on the iPhone.

There are many cool new iPhone apps. You can find a list of the best new iPhone Apps at the bottom of this post. mDialog is one of those new social media apps on the iPhone that has the potential to change the way we communicate with video. - Disclosure - I am working on a project for mDialog.

If you are not familiar with mDialog they are a company who delivers high-resolution social video via their website and they have an application on the Apple App Store that enables iPhone and iPod touch users to view and share high-resolution MPEG-4 and h.264 video with advanced social features.

This mDialog iPhone App opens up a whole new world of possibilities for both users and video publishers by bringing a range of social capabilities for video publishers and their audiences that go beyond basic viewing, include video surveys, voting, private sharing and flexible distribution options.

mDialog also takes full advantage of the iPhone's extensive SDK (Software Development Kit). This means mDialog works seamlessly with the iPhone's camera, address book, email, geo-locator and multi-language support.

The mDialog for iPhone application is available for free to users in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Spain and in three languages -- English, Spanish and French -- from Apple's App Store on iPhone and iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore/.
More languages are planned to be rolled out in the coming months.


I think there are some interesting monetization opportunities with the mDialog iPhone App just around the corner and I think the 3G iPhone will not just change social media forever I think the new 3G iPhone will change the way we monetize video.

Lower your head, watch your step and enjoy the rest of your day on the Internet.


List of Best New 3G iPhone Apps according to the Telegraph:

The prices are in pounds but you can figure out by reading the descriptions if you would be willing to spend your hard earned US Dollars on them.


Rotary Dialer (free): Brings a touch of old-school glamour to the cutting-edge iPhone. Use the virtual rotary-style dialler instead of the numeric keypad to make calls.

* Twitterific (free): A must for Twitter addicts, this simple but beautifully-rendered application provides a rich user experience and elegant layout.

* Starmap Planetarium (£6.99): Astronomers and space nuts will love this - a stargazing guide that provides information about constellations, planets and even shooting stars, plus oodles of scientific details.

* Lonely Planet Mandarin Phrasebook (free): With the Olympics just weeks away, now is the ideal time to get to grips with the Chinese language. This audio phrasebook provides a phonetic guide to Mandarin. You'll be debating the gold medal chances of the Chinese gymnastics squad with a noodle street vendor in no time.

* Remote (free): Turns your iPhone or iPod touch into a remote control for your Mac or Apple TV. It works with your wi-fi network so you can control playback and shuffle tracks from anywhere in your home.

* BA Flights (free): The UK's national airline has a live flight tracker application, which also allows quick access to the BA website. Sadly, there's no built-in baggage tracker. A shame the launch of this program didn't coincide with the opening of Terminal 5...

* PhoneSaber (free): Utterly pointless, but thoroughly cool, this app turns your iPhone into a light saber, complete with sound effects.

* UrbanSpoon (free): Can't decide where to eat? Shake your iPhone to pick a good restaurant. You can use GPS to find nearby eateries, or filter results by cuisine or price. Covers most US cities, as well as London.

* Etch-a-Sketch (£2.99): Twiddle the virtual dials to start a sketch, or draw directly on screen using your finger. "Tilt technology" will be added soon to enable you to move the iPhone itself to create a drawing.

* Meal Splitter (£4.99): There will be no need to squabble over restaurant bills with this application, which precisely calculates what each diner owes based on the cost of the meal. Okay, so the iPhone's in-built calculator could do pretty much the same thing, but this takes the pain out of the entire process; it will even work out how much the non-drinkers should pay compared to the drinkers.

* Vicinity (£1.79): Takes advantage of the iPhone 3G's GPS to provide one-tap access to information about local services and amenities. It will even pull in relevant Wikipedia entries and Flickr photos.

* Band (£5.99): Compose your own music using the collection of virtual instruments.

* Where? (free): A location-based application that will recommend the best restaurants, the nearest Starbucks, and even the location of friends in your network.

* Exposure (free): A quick and easy way to access your Flickr photo stream, as well as all your photosets, tags and contacts. An advertising-free version is available for £5.99.

* TypePad (free): If you've got a TypePad blog, download this application to instantly update your blog from your iPhone.

* Currency (free): This currency converter provides up-to-the-minute exchange rate information for over 50 currencies and 70 countries.

* Stage Hand (£4.99): Control your Apple Keynote presentations using your iPhone or iPod touch, and read and review slides on its screen.

* WeatherBug (free): Keep track of live, local weather information in up to three cities. Includes satellite maps and radar forecasts as well as severe weather alerts.

* Facebook (free): The simple interface allows you to chat with friends using Facebook messenger, post pictures to your profile, and check on your friends' status updates.

* Super Monkey Ball (£5.99): The pick of the bunch of new games for the iPhone and iPod touch. Tilt the device itself to control the progress of a monkey inside a transparent bubble. The graphics are first-rate, and the gameplay is highly addictive.

Imaginary Bitches Getting Some Real Views

There is a web series called Imaginary Bitches that is getting some real view counts today. Looks like they've also been getting some real press.

The show's creator, writer, producer, director Andrew Miller has done a great job of putting together a very real and likable cast

Eden Riegel: Eden
Brooke Nevin: Brooke
Elizabeth Hendrickson: Lizzie
Connie Fletcher Staton: Connie
Jessalyn Gilsig: Jessalyn
Greg Rikaart: Mark
Michael Traynor: Waiter
Aaron Staton: Bruce
James Kee: Dr. James Kee


So tell us Andrew, are you making real money?

And are you going to the New Media Expo?

The Deals Are Looking Better

It use to be that I would meet with studios, networks and Web 2.0 companies and they would tell me that they were willing to pay me to come up with an original idea, write it, shoot it, cut it and then deliver it to them with the copyright that they would own forever for the whopping large sum of $2000.00 per episode.

Well I can safely say that I never signed up to accept such a lucrative deal and I'm really sorry I didn't because the people that did take those deals are rich and famous now and that could have been me.

Oh, wait, there isn't anyone who took those deals who is rich and famous now. I was confused.

Now I remember, the content that the studios, networks and Web 2.0 companies created for $2000 per episode were so successful that they just keep showing them online hundreds of times - some of them thousands of times and advertisers paid millions of dollars to have their products advertised hundreds and in some cases even thousands of times.

Oh, wait, that didn't happen either. Sorry my mistake.

Okay now I really remember. They paid a couple thousand dollars and they got a few thousand views and they didn't hire those content creators again. But the good news is that now they are looking to pay, license or do a rev share and for a little bit more than two Grand.

I can't really go into details cause I don't want to screw things up and maybe by being such a smart ass about this I already am but I did want to share that I'm seeing a slight rise in the price that people are willing to pay per episode for online videos.

For a long term relationship to work there needs to be a "Win Win" situation where both sides are benefiting from the deal. If one side isn't getting something eventually they will walk. Maybe that's why we have so many divorces in America?

Even though some of us have been at online video for over 8 years now - Wow, I can't believe it's been that long - we are still in the early days of this new Industry. (Remember TV took over 25 years to really get off the ground.) Companies need to test the waters and see what they can do for minimal investment until someone starts making money and then they will copy that success. Unfortunately the market share for eyeballs continues to become more fragmented but viewer habits are still forming and that could mean that you and everyone else will start going to your favorite video site to check on new videos every day. I check my email every morning but I don't go to YouTube or other sites till later in the day. I do try to watch the evening news that I've Tivoed every night but I don't yet watch it online.

None the less large companies are looking to spend more money now on more emotionally compelling videos that will bring viewers to their site or make them stay longer once they are there.

How much more are they willing to pay?

Well, based on meetings that I've had and conversations that I've had with other people I'm hearing that companies are willing to pay $5000 to $20,000 per episode for exclusives or acquisitions. I wish I could share specifics with you but I don't want to screw up anything for myself or for others. I just want to let you know there is hope.

What do I mean by hope? $20,000 isn't going to make you rich but if you can get a five episode order, keep your costs low and create compelling content that will keep them coming back for more you can make a living. AND if you fund the creation of the content yourself and license it instead of sell it you can then license it to other markets for more money.

Lower your head, watch your step, and enjoy the rest of your day in online video.

The Magic Triad: 3 Crucial Ingredients for Creating Compelling Content and a Loyal Audience

The New Media Expo is the world's most popular convention for podcasters, bloggers and online content creators. If you are serious about online video it's an event that you shouldn't miss.

This is part of a weekly blog series that highlights a session or event happening at New Media Expo - hopefully enticing you to come join us online video content creators in Las Vegas August 14-16, 2008.

When it comes to podcasting Jason Van Orden is one of the most knowledgeable individuals on the planet. As one of the true pioneers of podcasting Jason has been sharing his knowledge for years. If you want to learn everything there is to know about podcasting Jason is your man. If you just want to know a little or need a little help Jason is also available for consulting. But no matter who you are and what you already know you won't want to miss Jason Van Orden's session because you will learn something and you might even remember something you forgot.

The Magic Triad: 3 Crucial Ingredients for Creating Compelling Content and a Loyal Audience
Track 2: Attracting and Growing Your Audience
Instructor: Jason Van Orden of JasonVanOrden.com
Description: In order to get your message heard online, it's important to regularly create compelling content that is relevant to your market. But what does it take to break through the noise, attract your target audience and keep them coming back again and again? In this session you'll discover three crucial ingredients for creating effective content that builds a large and loyal audience. The right balance of all three ingredients brings exponential success. Yet most show producers neglect at least one (and often even two) of the three ingredients. Using examples from successful podcasts and online content creators, Jason will demonstrate how to incorporate all three principles to form the right balance for your show. You'll also learn how to apply these principles to any web site or brand to increase market loyalty. Join us in this session and find out which three ingredients form the magic triad.

Oh, you might also want to Book your hotel now and get your free Expo Hall Pass today.

What New Formats Are You Creating?

IT Guy Vs Dumb Employees - Watch more free videos

Just like You Suck At Photoshop, The Website is Down by Josh Weinburg is using a new format that I will call The Screencast Narrative. The Screencast Narrative tells a story using what appears to be a screen cast of one of the characters' computer monitors. We never get to see the guy at the computer just what he sees on his screen.

Josh seems to have taken things a little further with The Website is Down in that he uses some webcams to show a web hosting technician at a server farm rebooting a web server. Other than that the story is played out with Halo screencasts, and Skype and email pop ups.

Screencast Narratives are a great cost effective way to tell a story without using a camera.
What new formats are you creating?

Has Your Camera Ever Made a Difference in Someone's Life?

Thanks to Scott Bourne I discovered an emotional story of how one person with a camera made a difference in someone's life.

"Photographer Rick Smolan tells the unforgettable story of a young Amerasian girl, a fateful photograph, and an adoption saga with a twist."

A Legal Thicket: New Media Production And Content Liability in the Digital Age

The New Media Expo is the world's most popular convention for podcasters, bloggers and online content creators. If you are serious about online video it's an event that you shouldn't miss.

This is part of a weekly blog series that highlights a session or event happening at New Media Expo - hopefully enticing you to come join us online video content creators in Las Vegas August 14-16, 2008.

There are very few Lawyers that are part of our new media community, Colette Vogele is the best. Colette has her own podcast Rules for the Revolution and has been involved in the online content creation community for as long as I can remember. She knows the players, she knows the game and I find it really hard to believe she's a lawyer.

I don't know Jeffrey Hermes but if he's on a panel with Colette he will either be good or make her look better than she already is. ;)

If you are considering creating new media and need to know the legal concerns you are going to have this is one session you won't want to miss.

A Legal Thicket: New Media Production And Content Liability in the Digital Age
Track 3: The Business of New Media
Instructor: Colette Vogele of Vogele & Associates and Jeffrey Hermes of Brown Rudnick
Description: This workshop will provide a comprehensive overview of the legal issues that a new media producer will consider in creating and distributing podcasts or downloadable content. Emphasis will be on understanding copyright (including ownership, works for hire, licensing and protection against infringement), trademark, and publicity rights issues which are key to content creation and distribution (whether commercial or noncommercial). This workshop will also cover the law of content-based liability as it applies to new media, including what constitutes defamation, invasion of privacy, and false advertising; how to recognize and avoid particular pitfalls with regard to content-based liability; what defenses are available to avoid libel claims; and what particular issues relate to new media. We'll also discuss an overview of the changing parameters of the Communications Decency Act. Conference attendees will learn how to: recognize potential "red flags" in the content they intend to publish; develop and implement a legal compliance strategy; and prepare for potential lawsuits.

Oh, you might also want to Book your hotel now and get your free Expo Hall Pass.

Do You Want to Believe?

Divx, the Juice Pack and Preaching to the Choir

Last night I went to the launch party for Divx at Cinespace in Hollywood. I think all the new media events are held at CineSpace. It's a good venue for our people - but more on that later.

Divx threw a great party and show off their PC media player that they are licensing into DVD players, TV sets and cable boxes. They aren't making any boxes just selling their technology into other people's boxes. The basic idea is that you would turn on your new TV and be able to connect and manage all of your personal media. Kind of like Apple TV but without Apple. The product demo looked pretty cool and if I wasn't so Apple brainwashed I would be really excited. The interface looks really cool the same way all those iPhone wanna be phones look really cool if there wasn't an iPhone. I can see the PC crowd getting very excited about Divx.

Another product I was very happy to see at the party was the Juice Pack by Mophie. You may remember from some of my Tweets a few weeks ago that while I was at iHollywood Forums event at the Roosevelt Hotel my iPhone Juice Pack was stolen from behind the registration desk while I was charging it. Well the folks at Mophie were kind enough to give me a replacement Juice Pack and it couldn't have come at a better time as I have Jury Duty today and no idea if I will ever see an electric outlet again. So thanks to Marc Salsberry and Mophie they have a really cool product and they are pretty damn nice to let me "evaluate" it.

Now about preaching to the Choir...

The online video / new media / social media community is great at networking with ourselves. We throw great parties, we pat ourselves on the back and we make us feel good about what we are doing in our little community. Well it's time we stop.

We have created a great little network of friends that do great work and are fun to hang out with and that's great but to what end? We need to invite other people into our circle to get the ball rolling on monetizing our work.

Tim and Emile Bourquin are doing a great job with the The New Media Expo but we as a community need to do more to get advertisers, sponsors and advertising agencies into our group. As I sit in the Jury Duty tank this morning I'm going to think of some ideas on what we can do to get this started because now is the time.

Do you have any ideas on bringing advertisers and ad agencies into our community?