December 2009
45 posts
Time Warner: Here's how to watch FOX online →
As the January 1st deadline looms to sign a new retransmission agreement between Time Warner and Fox — and Fox threatening to go dark on the cable network — Time Warner created a video to show its subscribers how to watch Fox shows on Hulu and Fox.com.
Also: Take a look at Time Warner’s RollOverorGetTough.com.
“If we are not successful, this business will be in peril.”
– Tony Vinciquerra, chairman of Fox Networks Group, regarding heated last-minute negotiations with Time Warner over how much the cable company should pay to carry Fox TV stations. The retransmission agreements expire on Dec. 31st, and if there’s no deal, Fox stations may disappear for Time...
The great location land rush of 2010 →
TechCrunch predicts (and I think it’s an easy prediction to make) that location awareness will be all the rage next year, from new products to acquisitions.
“One of the problems is newspapers fired so many journalists and turned them...”
– Alan Mutter, author of the Reflections of a Newsosaur blog, in this NYT story.
“If Apple signs up enough networks to launch a viable service—still a very big...”
– The WSJ reporting on a proposal by Apple to offer subscription packages to watch network TV over the internet. Not only would it destabilize the cable and satellite business, but depending on the model, would throw local affiliates a curve ball, too.
Is TMZ getting into sports? →
Someone noticed that they registered TMZsports.com, so let the rumors fly…
Update: Looks like this is happening. Gawker competitor Deadspin says, “Does this mean that every single person on the planet with a raunchy photo of athletes drinking or sliming over women will now run over to TMZ first because they’ll offer some payment for these types of photos? Yikes. That would...
Brightkite experiments with augmented reality ads →
If you own an Android phone with the Layar augmented reality app, you can pop up the Brightkite layer, point your phone around and see markers for Best Buy stores in the distance. Screen grab and write-up about the AR ad right here.
“We want to move with great discretion and thoughtfulness”
– Google’s Vic Gundotra on a facial recognition feature in Google Goggles that was disabled for privacy reasons before the mobile application was released.
“When I watch TV, I see robots. We’re not robots; we’re people.”
– Cenk Uygur, the outspoken host of the web video show, “The Young Turks” in this Fast Company story. While his quote may be sensible, he then exclaims that mainstream media is “f**ked” and “we’re coming for you.” By the way, his low-cost show generates...
ESPNLosAngeles.com launching Monday with top staff →
In this day and age, it’s not difficult for ESPN to find top local sports journalism talent.
“News organizations are belatedly, reluctantly and often awkwardly pursuing...”
– Steve Buttry in a blog post last month, and today he followed up with what a “mobile-first” strategy may entail in a local newsroom. “Every journalist must quickly get serious and fluent with metadata,” he explains, with location playing a prominent role.
Cox TV stations renew with WorldNow →
WorldNow will continue to power the video platform on Cox’s 15 TV station sites.
CBS interactive dumps ad networks →
Ad Age reports that CBS is done with third-party ad networks. “We are prepared to take a step back on revenue if we have to, but over time we will monetize at a much better rate than ad networks do,” said CBS Interactive CEO Neil Ashe.
“So what really scares me? It’s the rise of fast food content that will surely,...”
– TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington writing about the growing “content farms” trend — companies like Demand Media and now AOL that create a huge volume of content on the cheap, tailored primarily to attract search engine clicks. ReadWriteWeb posted a great follow-up here, urging...
“It’s a risk. It’s a bet.”
– AOL chief Tim Armstrong on Patch.com, adding that early results are promising. Patch does real local, not quasi-local, he explained to the crowd at the annual UBS conference in New York.
Reputation management 'will define the future' of...
One of the brightest emerging businesses in local is “reputation management,” or the ability for local businesses to track everything that’s being said about them, from Twitter to CitySearch — even watch how their reviews are trending. Here at ILM 09, Marchex and CloudProfile demo’d their reputation systems, and they’re slick. (You can watch a quickie Marchex...
“Poly-local”
– A term that NBC Local’s Brian Buchwald used at ILM 09 to describe a growing number of users who don’t distinguish between local and national content experiences. “The line is blurring,” he said. Buchwald says NBC Local now employs 140 people with 300 content freelancers,...
TV, radio sales teams gaining online traction
Here at ILM 09, the BIA Kelsey folks released some fascinating survey stats on sales channels — where local businesses go to spend their online ad dollars. The vast majority, 49%, use self serve to buy search ads. 24% go to yellow pages sales teams. 8% to ad agencies. 8% to newspapers. And 9% go to local TV and radio sales teams, up from 3% the year before. Why the big jump? BIA...
In LA for the Interactive Local Media conference →
Kelsey’s big annual local conference, Interactive Local Media 2009, runs Wednesday through Friday of this week. It’s a great lineup: Google, Twitter, ESPN Local, Facebook, MSN Local, AOL Local and many more. I’ll be there, and I hope to post and Tweet a few things here and there.
By the way, in years past, not many local media folks have attended — a little surprising...
CitySearch integrates Twitter into business... →
A claimed business listing on CitySearch may now include a link to the establishment’s Twitter account and a few of its latest tweets. Smart. See screen grabs here.
There's an app for that TV station →
An increasing number of TV stations are beginning to publish their own iPhone apps, and Broadcasting and Cable’s Michael Malone has a story on a few early efforts. For one, WTVT sold 3,000 downloads of its MyFoxHurricane app at $3.99 a pop.
“It’s understandable to look to find someone else to blame. But as Rupert...”
– Google CEO Eric Schmidt in an op-ed in today’s WSJ, “How Google Can Help Newspapers.” Schmidt counters accusations that Google is profiting off the backs of newspapers, explaining that Google ads next to news search queries only add up to a ” tiny fraction” of its...
“We all told the commissioner to kindly butt out.”
– Jeff Jarvis summarizing his comments — along with those of Rupert Murdoch, Arianna Huffington and Steve Brill — at the FTC workshop on journalism yesterday.
Seattle Times says Twitter key in hitting traffic... →
SeattleTimes.com had as many as ten staff members tweeting the developing story on Monday about the shooting of a man suspected of killing four police officers. Those tweets also appeared on the site’s home page. “The tweets were the third most-read thing on our site,” said Kathy Best, managing editor/digital news. The Times also experimented with Google Wave.
Huffington Post launches in Los Angeles →
Now the HuffPo has local editions in New York, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles, with more local markets on the way. “We intend to make HuffPost LA a must-click destination for engaged Angelenos looking to keep up with the latest on all things LA,” explains Arianna Huffington. “In many ways, it’s a homecoming. The initial idea for HuffPost was hatched in LA, five years ago...
ESPN moves up launch for Los Angeles site →
ESPN.com’s local rollout continues with its LA site launching on Dec. 21st.
Comcast to take majority stake of NBCU →
The deal will be finalized on Thursday, reports CNBC, but it could take as long as a year to close the transaction. Comcast will own 51 percent, and 49 percent will stay with GE.
YouTube thinking about streaming TV shows for a... →
But would you pay the same to watch a stream as you would pay to download and own?