Due to time constraints I skipped the weekly review last week but this weeks installment highlights some of the big news from
SXSW related to online video, streaming and distribution. South by Southwest (SXSW, Inc.) is a private company based in Austin, Texas, dedicated to building and delivering conference and festival events for entertainment and related media industry professionals. Since 1987, SXSW has produced the internationally recognized Music and Media Conference & Festival.
In 1994 as the entertainment business adjusted to issues of future growth and development, SXSW added conferences and festivals for the film industry (SXSW Film) as well as for the blossoming interactive media (SXSW Interactive Festival). Now three industry events converge in Austin during a Texas-sized week, mirroring the ever increasing convergence of entertainment/media outlets.
The SXSW Interactive Sessions ran from March 13-17 and consisted of panels, keynotes, core conversations and new product announcements. View the full schedule
here .
SXSW: Web Video Isn’t Killing TV - Digits - WSJ
While the popularity of online video skyrockets, a panel of comedians and technology executives cautioned that the content is still a long way from destroying traditional TV. That’s not to say that Web video isn’t changing the way TV actors and writers think about their jobs, they noted in a panel at the South by Southwest Interactive Conference in Austin, Texas, this weekend. The panel — which highlighted the role comedy plays in driving Web hits — quickly expanded to assess the success and influence of online-only content in general.
Web Comedy Vs. TV Comedy: The SXSW Showdown! « NewTeeVee Comedy on Television and the Web ,” moderator Ricky Van Veen of CollegeHumor.com opened with a provocative but arguable point: Unlike previous technologies, humor and not porn is driving the adoption of online video. What followed was a smart and (yes) funny conversation between leaders in web-based comedy and a couple luminaries in televised humor pondering how large web comedy can become compared with TV, and how the two mediums will influence each other. From the online world were panelists Van Veen, Keith Richman of Break Media , and Avner Ronen of Boxee ; Meredith Scardino , staff writer for The Colbert Report , and B.J. Novak , a star and writer for the U.S. version of The Office represented for old teevee. Here are some of my other favorite highlights, arranged as a series of questions (sometimes posed by the audience or panel, and sometimes by me)
DVDs Still Crushing Digital Distribution (AAPL, NFLX) Filmmaker Spurlock: Digital distribution revenues are 'pathetic' | Webware - CNET AUSTIN, Texas--The Internet and the rise of online video have meant a plethora of new options for independent filmmakers. But,
as has been well-publicized , the money just isn't there yet. A panel at the
South by Southwest Interactive Festival on Monday highlighted that this is an extremely contentious issue.
"Digital distribution is not some magic bullet," said panelist Gary Hustwit on the success of his documentary "Helvetica ," in front of a packed room of audience members that came from both SXSWi and its sister festival, SXSW Film. "It's not that because the film is available digitally it does well. It's because you do the work...because of that exposure, it did well."
In spite of widespread blog speculation that DVDs are dying and that digital downloads and streams will replace the physical medium in due time, filmmakers say that from the creative side, relying on these outlets--iTunes, Amazon, Hulu, Joost, and SnagFilms, represented on the panel by CEO Rick Allen--simply is not profitable yet. In fact, in many cases, sales and revenue numbers are kept on the down-low. Morgan Spurlock, the documentarian behind "Super Size Me " and "Where In The World Is Osama bin Laden? ," put it bluntly. "The reason numbers aren't released (for digital distribution revenues) is because the numbers are pathetic," he said. "The numbers are sadly low in comparison to what we expect from film and television."
"If you're looking to pay your rent, not so much, if you're looking to pay your phone bill, you have a great chance," Spurlock continued. "It's getting to a point where it's down the road from being profitable, but we're just not at that point yet."
Hulu Reveals Marketing Plans at SXSW - TVWeek - News By
Daisy Whitney
Building on its Super Bowl advertising momentum, online video destination Hulu plans to launch another network prime-time ad for its site later this week on NBC and Fox.
At the South by Southwest festival in Austin, Eric Feng, senior VP and chief technical officer at Hulu, said the spot will premiere Thursday night. He’ll preview the spot at his speech at the festival tomorrow, Mr. Feng told TelevisionWeek .
The new ad is part of a broader marketing campaign for Hulu that began at the Super Bowl when the site ran its first national prime-time ad, which featured Alec Baldwin of NBC’s “30 Rock.” Then in late February, Hulu ran a second prime-time spot on NBC and Fox starring “Dollhouse” star Eliza Dushku. The goal is to broaden the reach of the site and to build awareness of Hulu as a site to watch TV shows and films online, he said.
Mr. Feng also said Hulu will be experimenting with additional interactive advertising formats later this year. “It’s all about efficiency and effectiveness and we want to be an engaging place for advertisers and users,” he said.
TubeMogul Blog » TubeMogul Wins SXSW BizSpark Accelerator Contest SXSW event gives startups a place to pitch By Lilly Rockwell AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Brandon Wiley had only two minutes on Monday to explain what his startup company Ringlight does, how it is supposed to make money, and how it's different from competitors. And it was all in front of a Web-savvy audience of South By Southwest Interactive Conference and Festival attendees and a panel of three critical judges. After telling the judges that Ringlight allows people to access files on their desktop remotely with no limits on file size, Wiley was given some no-nonsense advice."There's a lot of big players out there solving this problem in very sophisticated ways," said Don Dodge, who works for Microsoft Corp. and is a veteran of five startups including Napster. "I hope you focus on something that is unique and a market that cares about it that won't go to the big players."
Brett Wilson, co-founder and CEO of TubeMogul, won in the online video-related technologies division at the Microsoft BizSpark Accelerator on Monday during South by Southwest Interactive. Online video-related technologies: Emeryville, Calif.-based TubeMogul is an online video analytics and distribution company that provides independent information about video performance on the Internet.
Video: SXSW Takes a Serious Turn - TVWeek - News Column: We’re All Frenemies Now - TVWeek - News - ‘Collabotition’ Offers Rewards If Boundaries, Benefits Are ClearMediaPost Publications The Declining Value of Content? 03/18/2009 At SXSW, filmmakers, brand representatives, advertising agency employees, and digital creatives of all types were talking about one topic: the market value of content is plummeting -- fast. This trend is being pushed by such factors as the affordability of professional equipment, the growing number of people (often amateurs) who are capable of doing the work, and the general acceptance online of lower-quality video content. There's an increase in available content, which is driving up the value of the distribution channel. Scobleizer: Technology, innovation, and geek enthusiasm » Blog Archive SXSW 2009 will be known as the “SMS & location explosion SXSW” « Brand Equity in the Age of UGC: Hey Dude, Don’t Be a Dick | CenterNetworks SXSW: Foursquare Scores Despite Its Flaws SXSW 2009: A Half-Dozen Things I Learned - Columns by PC Magazine What You May Have Missed at SXSW Interactive | Microblink louisgray.com: CloudContacts Teleports Your Business Cards to the Virtual World Geeks depart, but AT&T's SXSW coverage sucks | Digital Noise: Music and Tech - CNET News SXSW thoughts on Twitter's past, present, future | Matter/Anti-Matter - CNET News SXSW: Images from around Austin on the first day of music | Pop & Hiss | Los Angeles Times What’s In Your Gadget Bag (SXSW Edition) | Rocketboom Felicia Day » Blog Archive » Interview at SXSW With PBS Bootstrapping Web Workers Get A Roadmap At SXSW 2009 It’s a Social Media Jungle Out There! Missed Talks at SXSW? Learn Visually With Sketchnotes - ReadWriteWeb SXSW Was A Success For Me In Austin, a Thriving Weekly With a Mission - The New York Times SXSWi Wrap Up | AlwaysOn Mogulus Blog » Blog Archive » Steve Garfield Talks About Mogulus on PBS