Vidize Blog » Marketing

Bad people = good PR

admin — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 18:09:50 +0000

Riftstalker writes about Activision’s PR tactics. It seems they’re successful every time in attracting media coverage.

It begs the question if the guys in CNN (and other media) are journalists or just hacks.

Nassim Taleb on the highly improbable

admin — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 08:24:08 +0000

Nassim Taleb, a professor at New York University and author of “The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable,” talks with Bloomberg’s Erik Schatzker about the May 6 stock market selloff and his investment strategy.

YouTube advertising ignores UGC

admin — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 08:30:20 +0000

When Google introduced its ad model for YouTube, one could’ve expected that ads will show up in ALL cat-and-dog fighting videos (a.k.a. user-generated content or UGC). Instead, it appears that Google’s video ads will only show on videos supplied by the 3,000 professional content providers and 70 independent partner channels.

This quote from TVWeek:

Considering that giant Google spent $1.6 billion for YouTube primarily for its user-generated content, that might come as a bit of a shock. But given that even smaller sites such as ManiaTV have begun to eschew free-for-all user-generated video, it seems to add up to an admission that, while your cousin Joe’s video may draw a lot of eyeballs, it will never draw a lot of paying advertisers.

“There’s a huge audience built around user-generated content but no evidence that it is a profitable business,” said Peter Hoskins, who recently succeeded ManiaTV’s founder, Drew Massey, as CEO.

Hmm, I’ve seen plenty of advertising in shows like the “Funniest Animals” which rely SOLELY on user-generated content. So there HAS to be some money in cat-and-dog fighting videos…

Tags: ads, google, journalism, user generated content, video, web 2.0, youtube

ads, google, journalism, user generated content, video, web 2.0, youtube

No Plan, No Capital, No Model… No Problem

admin — Mon, 25 Jun 2007 18:19:08 +0000

This is a very informative video. Moderated by Guy Kawasaki.

Tags: churchill, Entrepreneurship, guy kawasaki, startup, VC

churchill, Entrepreneurship, guy kawasaki, startup, VC

How to tell you’re spamming DIGG

admin — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 11:04:56 +0000

Now, you’re all familiar with the DIGG phenomenon. A few people digg your post and suddenly tens of thousands of people visit your blog.

I admit I have only managed to get it to work for me once (though I never tried hard anyway). My Starcraft 2 blog had a post with 1,500 diggs and around 50,000 visitors.

OK, here’s the funny bit (see on the right). That’s the captcha I got when I decided to submit another Starcraft 2 related post.

A funny coincidence or not?

Tags: digg, fun, joke, marketing, social bookmarking, web 2.0

digg, fun, joke, marketing, social bookmarking, web 2.0

Bootstrapping space flight

admin — Tue, 05 Jun 2007 17:40:29 +0000

Apart from the obvious lesson (bootstrapping), Burt Rutan makes an amazing presentation on space flights, innovation cycles, commercialization of technology, and the superiority of private enterprise (to government).

Tags: bootstrapping, burt rutan, space, space flight

bootstrapping, burt rutan, space, space flight

AdSesne video-in-video ads

admin — Thu, 24 May 2007 09:05:13 +0000

Google has just announced at the AdSense blog that they have started a closed beta of AdSense for video.

Previously, it was possible to get a video ad instead of an image ad (granted you have opted in for video). This one is different and is probably tied to Google’s acquisition of Youtube.

It will now be possible to put AdSense ads INSIDE streaming videos. So you could host your own video and put an AdSense pre-roll and then another one at the end.

I still haven’t seen it in action but if Google is successful in monetizing video, it could be huge. The economics of video, however, are much different than text so it remains to be seen if the results will actually be worth it.

Tags: ads, adsense, google, user generated content, video, web 2.0, youtube

ads, adsense, google, user generated content, video, web 2.0, youtube

Adobe Media Player

admin — Mon, 14 May 2007 15:18:53 +0000

Just as Microsoft launches Silverlight in an attempt to compete with Adobe’s Flash, Adobe strikes back.

Adobe will be launching a desktop media player, which is called unsurprisingly, Adobe Media Player. The player will be able to play FLVs (flash video format) as well as a number of other video formats.

The player has been built on Adobe’s Apollo framework which will be available approximately at the same time as the player, i.e. in late 2007.

A lot of observers have been saying that Microsoft faces an uphill battle for marketshare with its Silverlight. I bet the hill is twice as steep when it comes to Adobe getting a foothold when it comes to desktop players.

Tags: Adobe, flash, media player, microsoft, silverlight, video

Adobe, flash, media player, microsoft, silverlight, video

Apple iPhone

admin — Fri, 22 Dec 2006 12:05:26 +0000

Although it’s too early to tell truth from fiction, it seems likely that Apple are working on a cell phone (dubbed iPhone by fans).

Most of the rumors center around Apple’s strength to create a streamlined, easy-to-use gadgets (like the iPod). I am thinking about the difference it could create for video.

Merging a video iPod and a phone could extend the reach of web video publishers. Gootube and other platforms that are being extended for mobile use could benefit as well.

One BIG question remains though – I’m not sure if Apple will make it an open platform. They could as well limit it to the iTunes store.

Tags: apple, google video, gootube, iphone, itunes, video, youtube

apple, google video, gootube, iphone, itunes, video, youtube

Yahoo restructuring

admin — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 09:05:56 +0000

I’m not a pundit or an expert for that matter. Looking at Yahoo’s unspectacular performance and Google’s rise to dominance, it makes sense they’ll be looking for change.

They in this case is no other than Yahoo’s BoD. The big news is that Yahoo’s CFO, Susan Decker, gets promoted, while quite a few senior people leave. Here’s the details:

Sources told CNBC’s Jim Goldman that Lloyd Braun, head of Yahoo’s media and entertainment group, was asked to leave the company on Tuesday morning after Yahoo first suggested he take a lesser role. Senior Vice President John Marcom, who ran Yahoo’s International Business operations, also was asked to leave. Yahoo also announced that Chief Operating Officer Daniel Rosensweig, once considered a rival to Decker to succeed Semel, will leave the company in March.

Yahoo posted a 37% drop in quarterly profit and its long-term options don’t look too good either. MySpace and YouTube, are effectively Google’s playground now, so there isn’t a quick M&A fix for Yahoo.

On top of that I’m always suspicious of companies run by CFOs, especially when they’re in a high-growth market. My gut feel is that CFOs work best with milk cows. I already feel sorry for Jumpcut and del.icio.us.

Tags: google, jumpcut, online, social, video, yahoo, youtube

google, jumpcut, online, social, video, yahoo, youtube