NBCOlympics.com Streaming the Games
NBC is significantly expanding its Olympics video offerings for the internet and mobile phones, a sure sign of its increased comfort with technologies that erect geographic boundaries online, however the video access will be limited to internet users in the United States.
The network’s official Olympics site, NBCOlympics.com, will show for free, on a delayed basis, the complete runs and routines for the top finishers and for all U.S. participants in almost every event. None of the video will be live; in most cases it won’t be available online or on phones until the end of NBC’s broadcast day, generally 11:30 p.m. ET. By contrast, the BBC is simulcasting five television feeds, though only to U.K. residents.
We count at least 5 major ad. brands on the home page including AT&T, Coke, Sun Microsystems, Samsung and Intel. It would be very interesting to see the cost / benefit data once this project is finished. Via: Wired
UPDATE: NBCOlympics.com Sets Record, Makes Money
In the past, NBC worried that putting Olympics video online would eat into TV ratings. Those worries are starting to fade, as this year’s decision to run video online just after they air has paid dividends. By Feb. 22, NBCOlympics.com served up 6.4 million video streams, with 72,000 hours of video watched. Plus, the site had 278 million page views, shattering the old record of 251.4 million page views from all of the 2004 Summer Games.
NBC Universal’s Dick Ebersol told AdAge that this will be the first time NBC has turned a profit with its website, projecting it would bring in about $5 million to $6 million for its entire run. Ebersol said that by 2012, even more people will be watching the Olympics online or on other platforms. “To this point, the money that pays for the Olympics, for our rights, is still largely money coming from TV advertising,” he said. “As soon as we see significant money start to come in from fields like the Internet and wireless, we’ll adjust our policies even more.” Of course, NBC isn’t the only game in town for following the Olympics. News.com notes that Yahoo, ESPN and various blogs and podcasts have also made hay with Olympic coverage online. Via: OPA
- Also of interest - so says the machine:
Video Reports from the Special Olympic Games
Farmers’ Almanac TV (who knew?!?) will offer friends and families of athletes competing in the first-ever Special Olympics USA National Games the opportunity to view daily reports on the games via the Internet. The Special Olympics USA National Games will be held from July 2 through July 7, on theMarchMadness Free Web Video On Demand
Sports events have been shown on the Net in the past, by CBS, ESPN, and others. But the audiences have been limited, since they typically cost viewers money or are niche events. Since the Webcast will be paid for with advertising, it could draw the biggest online viewership ever.Fox to Offer Video Streaming Soccer Channel
Vividas announced the launch of the new Fox Soccer Channel, which will offer on-demand soccer matches from England's Barclays Premier League, as well as other international competitions to millions of viewers throughout the United States. The new service allows full-screen video and the e-commerce back end also offers consumers easy,Vobile Launches VideoDNA Live at NAB
Vobile has announced the release of VideoDNA Live, during the NAB tradeshow this week, which is described as an advanced video DRM solution specifically designed for live broadcast events such as the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. The service offers broadcasters and rights holders real-time digital fingerprinting, fully automated identification, trackingMark Cuban Laughs at HD Web Video Streaming
Mark Cuban, founder of HD.net, said that the Internet's "ancient technology" of copper wires and coaxial cable means that reliable streaming of high def. content is a non-starter. Internet video is only as good as its weakest link, he said, and that's "pretty weak". The concept of web-delivered video replacing traditionalViacom Buys Atom Entertainment for $200M
MTV Networks, a division of Viacom, Inc. announced a definitive agreement to acquire Atom Entertainment Inc., for $200 million. Atom Entertainment has popular brands in games with Shockwave.com and AddictingGames.com as well as video via AtomFilms.com and AddictingClips.com. The company makes money through a combination of ad sales, games salesClassic Short Films Streaming from NFB
The Canadian National Film Board has a section dedicated to streaming their classic animation short features — EH! — such as The Cat Came Back and The Big Snit. Nods of approval to all the people involved over there to make this happen.. def. good enough for defacto government work.Cisco Gets ‘Any Stream to Any Screen’ with Adobe Flash
Cisco and Adobe have announced the Cisco Content Delivery System will be the first system of its type to natively support Adobe Flash streaming capabilities, in addition to traditional progressive delivery. Service providers and organizations of all types using the Cisco CDS will be able to deliver Adobe Flash PlayerTechnorati Daily Vlog - What a Concept!
The first edition of Technorati's Daily Vlog rolled-out today with highlights of the hot sites, videos, photos, and games showing you what the world LIVE web is abuzz about at any given moment in time. Amazing idea.. somebody should tell RocketBoom to think about doing something like this..?!?Toyota Launches SNS Video Portal for Hybrid Owners
VitalStream has been selected by Saatchi & Saatchi to power Flash video streaming for a new online community designed to facilitate interaction among Toyota hybrid drivers and promote the benefits of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive technology. VitalStream’s Streaming Service for Flash enables Web surfers to submit videos in most formats,
- Time Warp
- Future :: Happy Valentines from ZeFrank.com
- Past :: Inside the Mafia with Donny Brasco
