Resources
In preparation for VidCamp, I thought it would be helpful to list some recent resources that highlight several issues currently being discussed in the digital entertainment public conversation.
Here is an introductory list, which is by no means exhaustive – but, hopefully somewhat helpful and interesting:
HD: The Big Picture Means More Than Ever Before
The implementation of HD has begun, and although broadcasters and distributors are struggling with the issue of standards, as well as the many choices and the costs of updating the infrastructure, there is every indication that the shift will be swift.Is That a Video Game — or an Ad?
Marketers and game makers alike are latching onto in-game product placements and advertising. Is it an intrusion or another creative element?Is the Web the New Hollywood?
The Internet is becoming a breeding ground for filmmakers and TV producers in both the indie-video and mainstream worlds.Film or Ad?
Many advertisers are worried that traditional ways of reaching consumers, including the 30-second television spot, are losing their power to persuade. To reach consumers today, you have to entertain them, marketers say, rather than approach them with a hard sell.MTV’s Master Class in Broadband
Videos, attitudes and interactivities converge at MTVU Uber, MTV’s new broadband network, programmed exclusively for college students.The Long Tail
Forget squeezing millions from a few megahits at the top of the charts. The future of entertainment is in the millions of niche markets at the shallow end of the bitstream. This article describes the concept, The Long Tail.The Cost of A La Carte Television
Capn Design breaks down the cost of downloading every episode of every show he watches for a whole year. Some interesting financial results and assumptions.The Reshaping of Revenue
According to the latest industry figures, a reshaping of industry revenue, expenses and profits will be far more positive than negative for companies willing to go with the flow. While it is still too early to accurately track the value being transferred and created, particularly among content providers, it is possible to make some intriguing observations.CBS To Offer Downloads Directly to Consumers
The big story in CBS’s announcement is that it will sell the shows itself, bypassing any middlemen.US Congress Gives OK to Digital TV Switch
Congress decreed the end of TV as we know it Wednesday, when the House of Representatives approved a $39 billion budget-cutting measure that requires broadcasters to turn off their current analog channels by 2009.Warner Bros to Offer Legal P2P File Sharing Alternative: In2Movies
Warner Bros has made plans to start its own peer-to-peer file-sharing network, allowing internet users to legally download popular movies and TV shows for viewing on a computer.CBC Creates New Technologies Division – CBS Vision
The new CBS Corp. has planted another stake in new media with the formation of a research arm focused on emerging technologies. The research group, called CBS Vision, will work with CBS divisions as well as clients and media partners to help navigate the evolving world of traditional and new media.Digital Future Requires Indie Streak in Local TV
Broadcast television stations are getting yet another taste of a digital future they can’t seem to get their arms around fast enough; it’s a time when their place in a transforming media world is becoming more marginalized.A Generation Serves Notice: It’s a Moving Target
Joe Hanson, 22, of Chicago likes to watch television, but rarely on his TV. A folder on his computer lists an inventory of downloaded cable and network programming – the kind of thing that makes traditional media executives shudder. Read this interesting case study of how the younger generations are using technology to fit their lifestyles.Media Revolution: Podcasting Part I
In part one of a two-part article, learn about the who, what, why and how behind the newest form of media information and entertainment — podcasting.Media Revolution: Video Podcasting Part II
In part two of this two-part article Steve Garfield and David Tames focus on video podcasting.Captain Crunchberry Gang
Another interesting podcast discussion where Mike Arrington of TechCrunch fame joins Dan Farber, Mike Vizard, Doc Searls, and Dana Gardner for a rowdy trip down the Yellow Brick Road to OZ, where Mickey and Goofy are caught smoking dope with Steve Jobs on the iTunes back lot. Or something like that. (Warning: this description bears no actual resemblance to the show contents.)Web threatens TV: report
Canadian broadcasters are among the most vulnerable to an onslaught of new technology that is changing how people watch TV, warns an IBM report titled “The End of Television as We Know It: A Future Industry Perspective”. For another report on the study, read BackStage’s article.Digital Rights Management (DRM): Media Companies’ Next Flop?
Big media players are accustomed to watching the ratings for the most popular music, video and book content, but perhaps they should pay more attention to how consumers feel about three letters at the bottom of most charts — DRM, which stands for digital rights management.Reinventing Media: A Panel Discussion
This podcast of a panel discussion, led by grassroot media pioneer Dan Gillmor and consisting largely of audience questions, brings together entrepreneurs from different areas of the internet media world to discuss issues surrounding the explosion of online media.Emerging Video Trends
In this podsession, Om Malik and Niall Kennedy sit down to discuss the current and future state of video creation and distribution technologies.Media 2.0
The media industry is changing. Radical technological, management, and business model innovation is reshaping all segments of the value chain. This is the result of nothing less than a fundamental inversion of mass media economics, as well as the strategies that dominated those economics.New Media Deal, Part I
The New Media deal is that we as American consumers are willing to share a certain amount of personal information in exchange for even better content, more personalized services, or even more targeted marketing — again, as long as those things aren’t too intrusive and provide adequate value.New Media Deal, Part II – the We Media Deal
The We Media Deal has two components to it: (1) the value of the service to you increases in lock-step as you contribute more data to it, and (2) the more transparent the value exchange, the more willing you are to share your data.The Future of Media, Part I
Fred Wilson has seen the future of media and here is what it looks like.The Future of Media, Part II
Fred Wilson continues his look at the future of media.The Future of Media…Looks Just Like the Past but Different
Mark Pincus posits that the future of media is found in the past.The Trends and Issues Likely to Shape ‘06 Biz
“If 2005 was the year that digital broadband technology took the media and entertainment industries by surprise, then 2006 will be the year it takes control.” In this article, Diane Mermigas presents some interesting projections of what we can expect in the coming year.Building a Better Movie Business
It’s the iconic American industry. But audiences are vanishing, piracy is soaring, and new technology is treacherous. Can Tinseltown innovate its way out of trouble?Peer-to-Peer: The Problem is the Solution
The future of film distribution will take a cue from the pirates of today.Searching for Success in the Interactive Age
Flooding the market with downloads of existing content and breaking up media conglomerates is no way to nurture a digital broadband revolution. Such knee-jerk responses by established media companies to unprecedented technology-driven changes in their business must soon give way to a more thoughtful harnessing of the shifting dynamics and demands of interactivity.Mass Media’s Last Blast
I want my MTV — and my TiVo, Palm Pilot, iPod, podcast and, of course, blog. So does America still have any interest in the big, lumbering, predictable media of Hollywood and Manhattan?Future of Internet TV Is Coming Into View
No single company put everything together into a magical product at the Consumer Electronics Show this year, but you didn’t need much imagination to connect the booths and see the Internet TV networks of the 21st century struggling to be born.Mobile Biz Gets Moving
A quick look at the numbers: currently, only 3.1% of the 16 million cell phones in Canada can play video, and only 10% of those users ever tune in, according to mobile shop QuickPlay Media. But, by 2008, roughly 90% of the projected 18 million cell phones will be video capable.Mark Cuban Maverick Mogul
As he builds his own digital version of the vertically integrated movie studio, Broadcast.com founder Mark Cuban is questioning everything about the business–and naturally ticking a lot of people off.Survey Points to Big Jump in 2006 Canadian Ad Budgets
Canadian companies are plumping their marketing budgets amid a buoyant economy and the rapid expansion of on-line marketing.New Podcast Ad Network Launches
The still nascent podcasting ad industry has a new player. Kiptronic, a San Francisco-based startup company, has launched a new ad network which will allow podcasters to dynamically insert audio advertisements within podcasts as they are downloaded.CBS to Launch ‘Micro-Series’ on Television and Internet
Continuing the evolution of television marketing, CBS said a “micro-series” will air in seven installments of a minute or less and be available online and by cell phone.AtomFilms to Launch Studio for Online Content
As the Internet has become the people’s stage and online video takes off, AtomFilms has launched what could be one of the first of many new studios dedicated to the production of video for the Web.
I will keep adding more resources and links as they become available. However, if you have any articles, podcasts, or other references that you think should be added to the list, please drop me a note!