Microsoft Uses Ads In Silverlight Player

Following in the footsteps of YouTube, Microsoft hopes to monetize the content in its Silverlight player with the inclusion of advertisements within videos. Initially being tested in a New York Magazine website piece, the video will feature ad integration from companies such as Continental Airlines and Olay. A Wired news story has the following quote:

What does New York magazine get out of it? The opportunity to do a web series with Microsoft footing a big chunk of the bill. Microsoft pays the tech and production costs for the video, and provided a direct line to Redmond (in Washington state, where Microsoft is based) for any technical problems.

Video player providers seems keen to attempt to make advertising work in the same way it has worked on websites in the past. The issue seems to be that advertisements within videos are seen as intrusive, especially in an era where users are shying away from tradition television in favor of ad free content online as well as using DVR to skip though advertisments on TV. Using Pay-per-view content seems to be one way to ensure financial gains, though it relies on the viewer’s willingness to pay for online content that would be free of ads.

NFL Does Streaming, Ends Badly

One of the advantages of streaming media is the ability to cover live events. What event is more popular in America than football? Unfortunately the NFL’s attempt at entering the world of streaming video did not go according to plan. With poor quality, ads in between vital plays, and the inability to watch the game in full screen, fans are not pleased. Business of Video reports:

I know that from day one, the NFL has clearly stated that this online video offering is an “experiment” to test the idea of potentially bringing more games online down the road. But even as an experiment, you would think the NFL would want to provide the best quality user experience possible? All they keep saying is that the steps they have taken, like the capping, is to increase the “user experience”, yet it’s doing the exact opposite. What do you think of the NFL’s streaming experience to date?

Perhaps the NFL needs to take a page out of the High School Football playbook when it comes to broadcasting games over the internet. The state of Iowa, under the direction of Iowa Telecom have begun to offer football games online. They’ve also found a way to monetize this content using pay-per-view, in which viewers are able to purchase credits to watch the games. This benefits out of state fans who would otherwise not be able to watch the games as well as the schools and Iowa Telecom who are able to increase revenue from the offerings.

Time for the NFL to step it up if they hope to tackle the web successfully

Video Email

Remember when you would open your inbox and find yourself overloaded with pages and pages of text? Times changed and emails became more complex, with images taking the place of text-filled documents. With high-speed internet becoming the norm in today’s digital world, static e-mails are not aging well. Now that the speed of instant messages and blackberries have reduced the importance of text based email, businesses are suddenly in need of a new tactic to keep clients checking their inboxes. This is where companies take a page from the web 2.0 trend of video sharing and adapt it into a viable alternative to text emails- Video Email. Rather than waiting for clients to stumble upon their sites, businesses are now able to use video to communicate directly with their consumer.

In the past several years, viewing online video has grown to become a daily activity for many internet users. A Comscore survey found in 2007 that 138 million internet users in America watch videos online.
This translates to three out of every four U.S. internet users, a market that video providers cannot ignore. You might be thinking, why video email? Why not just have the videos posted on your site and let the customers come to you? Surely the effectiveness of sites like YouTube succeed in the mentality that if you build it they will come. Sending a simple email message may seem like the way to inform customers of video content, but why tell them when you can show them? Video email
doesn’t have recipients wade through paragraphs of text. Instead they are able to see and hear the video as soon as they receive the email, receiving your intended message in a fraction of the time it takes with traditional email.

See how ClickStreamTV handles video email.

Comparing Streaming And Progressive Video

What’s the difference between streaming and progressive download formats?

Videos in progressive download format (such as Quicktime), must be fully or partially downloaded before they can be watched. Streaming is largely favored over progressive downloads, because it includes many capabilities that progressive downloads don’t (such as its live webcasting capabilities). Who would want to download a large video file to their desktop when they could simply stream it in their web browser? It might help to compare progressive downloading to the VCR, whereas streaming media’s delivery is a lot like broadcast television. Also, because of its direct content-to-consumer delivery, streaming online video is much more difficult to pirate than online video in progressive download format.

Online Advertising Grows In 2008

Companies are seeing that online advertising has become one of the most effective ways of gaining customers and instilling brand recognition in their existing consumer base. According to a report on Wired, advertising on the web has grown 15% since the start of the year:

Internet advertising revenues in the U.S. were $11.5 billion for the first half of 2008, a new half-year growth record that represents a 15.2 percent increase from the same period in 2007.

Growth in the second quarter of ’08 slowed slightly, with a 12.8 percent increase over the same period in 2007.

When a small business looks to invest in online marketing, one of their options beyond paying for ad space is to create their own multimedia sections to attract visitors. Grocer Moo and Oink created Moo TV, using online video to compile their commercials to not only increase their sales with loyal customers, but also attract new customers and attention with different marketing techniques.

Even with the current economic crisis, many businesses are finding online marketing to be their most affordable and effective means of reaching potential consumers.

ClickStreamTV Versus The Competition

Case Study: Arctic Snow & Ice Control

 

Situation

Located in Frankfort, Illinois, Arctic Snow and Ice offer plowing services as well as the sale of Sectional Sno-Plow. The Sectional Sno-Plow is a patented plow that was designed by Arctic and is unlike plows offered by any other company. Because of this new equipment, Arctic Snow and Ice needed a way to not only advertise their services, but also demonstrate and fully explain the Sectional Sno-Plow for potential customers.

Solution

Using ClickStreamTV, Arctic Snow and Ice was able to create a video that walked viewers through the inner workings of the Sectional Sno-Plow. This video gives potential customers the experience of being on a trade show floor while also presenting them with a full run down on the new product. Along with the “trade show” video, visitors to Arctic’s website can view commercials for the Sno-Plow as well as their snow and ice removal service. Using ClickStreamTV’s interface, Arctic is adding new video content to their site and are able easily divide their videos between potential Sno-Plow customers and those in need of plowing assistance.

Result

Since the addition of video content to the website of Arctic Snow and Ice, the company has recorded higher sales than they ever expected. Potential customers who view the videos have commented that they have gained a complete understanding of the product, which would not have been possible with a brochure. Arctic Snow and Ice has increased their market presence by offering a new product, and creating an online video campaign that specifically targets interested customers. 

Check out some ClickStreamTV samples

Why ClickStreamTV?

Whether you want to produce on-demand or streaming, Windows Media, Flash, or iPod, Digital One would love to make your organization a success in the world of streaming media. Below are just a few of the unique features and possibilities ClickStreamTV offers:

Multi-Format Capability

Our multi-format capabilities mean greater compatibility for your viewers. In addition to Silverlight, Windows Media, and Flash, we can support as many other formats as you’d like. Why house so many format ‘flavors?’ Ultimately, it means that your viewers will get the best quality video possible, no matter what their compatibility is. Offering multiple formats also means better cost control for your organization, as WMV files are much cheaper per gigabite to stream than Flash files are. Ultimately, using a multi-format platform means that your organization has lots of room for expansion. The choices are yours – we’ll provide all of the tools you need.

Video Email

From a marketing standpoint, our Video Email tool offers a direct connection with your clients that no other streaming media company can match. You can track the number of times your video emails are opened and viewed by your clients, and our list manager feature allows you to control all aspects of your media campaigns. Digital One does not not simply offer streaming media – we offer tools to help your company build relationships with its clients.

Media Management

None of this would be relevant without a good media management function. The Media Control Center, which is part of the ClickStreamTV platform, lets you access and control all aspects of your media at any time through Digital One’s web portal. Whether you want to embed video, audio, graphics, PDFs or any other type of files, the Control Center’s easy upload application can do it. Our dashboard also offers administrative tools that make it easy for you to monitor site statistics and graphics, as well as a diverse display of analytics that inform you about your site’s traffic and visitors. The Media Control Center is designed to give your organization room to grow, learn and improve your viewership, all concentrated in one easy-to-use control panel.

Single Interface Navigation and Management

Your media should be adaptable! With our one-click interface navigation, you can utilize all avenues of online communication with your target population. Management of our interface is just as simple as its navigation – you can manage your playlists and attach particular files to your email campaigns, as well as the interface itself, so you can control how your media appears on your website. Our encodes are also downloadable, meaning that you can import files internally.