Your Chance To Be A New Media Hero

April 9, 2008 By

Today is your chance to take part in New Media history. Podiobook pioneer Scott Sigler has a chance to be the first Podcast author to hit the New York Times bestseller list. This is an important moment in New Media and could open doors for many other indie writers. If you have not already purchased a copy of Sigler’s Infected, you should do so at Amazon.com or better yet, at major bookstores everywhere. Borders, Barnes and Noble, your choice.

Infected is a great read and it’s your chance to be  New Media Hero.

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Filed Under: Blog, New Media

What ever happened to Joost?

April 6, 2008 By

It’s never a good thing to have a story about your company begin with “Whatever happened to…” but in this case I have to ask it. When Joost launched in beta it was the hottest thing going. Everyone wanted an invite and many thought the newest creation by the guy who brought us Skype would surely be a hit. High quality online video with commercial content and interactivity, how could it loose?

I had an early Joost beta account and I had high hopes as well. While the downloadable client application was slick, there was virtually nothing to watch. Someone once said content is king and with regards to Joost it was never more true. Months and months dragged on. There were announcements from Joost about content deals, but I never saw anything compelling in my client. You only have so much time to hit when you announce yourself in the Web 2.0 world. There are so many things happening so fast, if you don’t get some traction, the next big thing will wash ashore and you’ll be all but forgotten. What ever happened to…

Joost had every reason to succeed. They were formed by known entities with a proven track record. The weberrati were ready and willing to embrace it. But content really is king and if you can’t deliver the goods, it doesn’t matter how slick your client is or how good your business plan is. At his point, Joost is stuck with a large, heavy desktop application while the rest of the online video world has moved to web distribution. The real nail in the coffin was Hulu. Hulu does everything Joost purports to do but does it on the web and actually has high quality content.

There have been stories this week about a Joost restructuring, a new plan that includes US only distribution. Paidcontent.org has sources that say that’s not so.  Either way, I don’t see how Joost recovers and becomes important again. They’re way behind the curve and all the mojo has drained out. With enough money they can hobble along for awhile, but mark this one down as a success that should have been. I guess you can’t win them all.

Filed Under: Blog, New Media, Technology, Web 2.0 Tagged With: , ,

Social Media Morning 4/4/08

April 4, 2008 By

There is power in connecting your offline and online worlds. Don’t forget to get out and be social.

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  Social Media Morning

Filed Under: Podcast

Why is Goggle "unnerved" by MicroHoo

April 3, 2008 By

Google’s Sergey Brin is freaked out by the proposed merger of Yahoo and Microsoft. Why?

Partly Google is trying to trough as much cold water as they can on the deal. Having two weak competitors hanging around instead of one possibly larger and stronger one is better for Google.

Google says the merger is bad for innovation on the Internet and bad for users. Partly this is driven by the fact that Yahoo is a an open standards based company and Microsoft is not. It is a legitimate fear that Microsoft will take what good Yahoo has done and turn it into a proprietary mess. But Yahoos impact on the net is not very strong right now, so that loss wouldn’t do much. Most of the innovation lately is coming from all the web 2.0 companies popping up like daisies. We would all morn the loss or degradation of Flickr and Delicious though.

It’s unusual to see Google show any fear lately which makes me thing there might actually be something to a Microsoft Yahoo combination. I still think most of the Yahoo talent will leave and the whole thing will crumble apart. What is left of Yahoo will be overwhelmed by the Microsoft dominant culture.

So Sergey, rest easy, there is nothing to fear. And the Internet, it will survive. That’s what it does best. Adapt and change.

Filed Under: Blog, Technology, Web 2.0 Tagged With: , , ,

Netflix and Apple TV – Great and Flawed

April 3, 2008 By

As a movie lover, I love  my Netflix subscription. I can get practically any movie ever made including many indie ones that never show near me. I pay one simple monthly fee and can watch as many movies as I can handle. I can take as much time to watch the movie as I need and return it at my convenience. It’s the kind of business model that’s made Netflix a winner and has put undue pressure on Blockbuster. What could be better?

Well, if I didn’t have to wait for the mail to get a movie. If I could sit in the comfort of my couch and order up movies instantly. Enter Apple TV. Especially with the new Take 2 version of Apple TV where rentals are part of the equation, the speed an simplicity of watching movies on demand is unparalleled.

Netflix and Apple have equal but opposite problems. Apple  has a fantastic distribution system but not nearly enough movies. Netflix has all the movies and then some, but an outdated and slower delivery method. I’m waiting for one or the other to deliver the knockout punch. If Netflix could only deliver online more effectively. Their current system for watching movies online is cumbersome, only works with Windows and is available for very few movies. So, it’s useless. Apple has very few movies available and at the rate they add movies, it will take a lifetime to match the Netflix selection. Also, Apple has some of the more draconian and lame DRM rules for rented movies. Lastly, at $3.99 per movie, it only takes 3 iTunes movie rentals to equal a basic Netflix subscription which gets you unlimited movies per month and no stupid DRM rules.

Now Apple is the 10,000lb gorilla in this match and should be able to knock out Netflix easily, but so long as Apple and Hollywood keep their heads in the ground, they’re never going to do it. I actually blame Hollywood on this one as they are mostly short sided and paranoid. I think Apple does want to knock out Netflix but Hollywood won’t let them. Hollywood execs are more scared of Steve Jobs than they are of the so-called movie pirates. Fear is never a winning business strategy.

Filed Under: Blog, Marketing, Technology Tagged With: , , , , ,
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