Trial and Error

Let’s bring an end to useless DVD screeners.

I’d be happy never to receive a screener DVD from a network again. So I’m going to follow Showtime’s lead of nixing DVD screeners. I don’t want the silver discs, either. I don’t want cardboard boxes or envelopes to recycle or jewel cases to wonder about how to recycle. I don’t want to be responsible for more oil used in more trucks to deliver DVDs by mail or UPS. Public relations executives, send me your TV shows, your videos, your screeners online!

Showtime Networks partnered with Internet TV provider Brightcove today to send the Showtime programs eligible for Emmy consideration to Emmy voters online. That’s right—not in the mail, not via UPS, not by FedEx.

Starting Feb. 15, Showtime will offer full seasons of its original shows via the Brightcove player to Academy of Television Arts & Sciences members for balloting. The shows will be available throughout June on Brightcove’s new player designed specifically for hi-def, hi-res, full-screen viewing.

Showtime said it’s the first network to offer shows online for award consideration. The network hopes others will follow suit. “It’s much more economical, ecological and also makes it easier for the member,” said Richard Licata, Showtime executive VP of corporate communication, in a phone interview.

However, the Emmy effort is not 100% digital. Showtime still will send three DVDs via mail, although that’s down from 20 last year. I asked Mr. Licata why they’re sending any discs in the mail.

“The demo of the TV Academy does have some members who may not be as technically confident, so it’s always kind of been a baby-step type of thing. This is a way to bridge it and get started,” he said. “And if there are older members who are not as comfortable online, they will see two great episodes from every one of our shows.”

Showtime has my vote.

Look across the pond.

That’s what NBC may be doing with its new approach to pilots.

NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker talked at NATPE this morning about his new mandate to radically reduce pilot production at NBC and to rely on a model of ordering series direct-to-air, the way it’s done in Britain.

“We will do fewer and order series straight to air. Or like in Britain, where there are no pilots and we keep ordering their shows,” he said.

You can’t go wrong with puppets. Especially puppets as attorneys. So if you want to know how to end the writers strike, check out this video, written by Seth Macfarlane. Warning: it’s got swear words in it.

The WGA Negotiating Table - Watch more free videos

MTV Networks launched its first network show in hi-def online in “GameTrailersTV With Geoff Keighley” last week. The show is fronted by video game expert Geoff Keighley—obviously, given the name—and it premiered Jan. 25 on Spike TV.

But the show is all about multiplatforming, so you can also find it on Gametrailers.com, Xbox Live Marketplace, iTunes and Amazon Unbox. GameTrailers is the evolution of “Game Head,” the show Keighley hosted on Spike for two years. The show, which airs Friday nights on Spike TV, features all the latest videogame news, reviews and previews.

Keighley says it’s the first show MTV has put up online in hi-def.

Also, MTV Network’s Entertainment Group inked a talent and development deal with Keighley last week. Under the deal, he’s the executive producer for his show; he also will create additional TV programming, consult on Spike TV’s annual “Video Game Awards" show and host a number of specials.

As for GameTrailers, I don’t think I have a hi-def monitor on my laptop, but the show still looks darn good. You can watch it, too:

Whew! Gary Vaynerchuk was just teasing Wednesday when he said in episode 392 of WineLibraryTV (http://tv.winelibrary.com/) that he was only producing seven more episodes of the hyper-popular daily online Web show about wine.

At the end of Wednesday’s episode he said there would be only seven more. But I noticed on my Facebook page that he’d joined a new group, “Keep Wine Library TV Going.” See, I could be a detective. Because that was my clue. Why would he join a group to save his show? After all, he has the singular power to save his show.

So I e-mailed him and asked point-blank if the show was ending. And Vayniacs of the world can breathe a sigh of relief.

“It is not ending,” he wrote. “It’s my random mind doing things, just getting the Vayniacs excited and me excited :) it’s awesome. I adore them!”

Talk about freedom of choice.

You can get your Hulu videos from www.Hulu.com and www.Openhulu.com, a clone of the original.

Openhulu features nearly the same content as the NBC Universal-Fox joint venture, with full episodes of shows like “30 Rock” and “Friday Night Lights.”

At first blush, the site has trouble written all over it and seems like a prime target for a copyright lawsuit, a la Viacom’s $1 billion suit against Google-owned YouTube.
But it turns out Openhulu is legit. “[Hulu] allows embeds. I took all the embeds and made them publicly available,” said Matt Schlicht, who’s running Openhulu.

Hulu said that’s true. “Openhulu is using Hulu’s embeddable video player to feature videos on their site—they do not have a formal relationship with Hulu,” said Hulu spokeswoman Christina Lee.

“We encourage viral distribution of Hulu content on the Web,” she added. “That said, viral distribution of premium content is still a new concept and we evaluate each usage of the Hulu player on a case-by-case basis.”

Who would have thought? Big media being cool with viral distribution.

Want to know how advertisers are getting into viral video?

Here’s a creative example.

General Motors has teamed up with online comedy duo Rhett and Link to cover the Sundance Film Festival. The pair of viral video stars is in Park City, Utah, producing daily videos with an irreverent flare. Here’s an example:

This is kind of weird. Consumers don’t like ads. Even in online video. Even when it’s streamed. So strange…

A new study from Burst Media, an online advertising firm, found that while more than half of online video viewers (53.6%) recall seeing pre-, post- or mid-roll ads in video, more than three-quarters find them intrusive.

Also, half of online video viewers say ads in video content disrupt their viewing experience. To add insult to injury, 50% of viewers also stop watching an online video if they encounter an ad. Only 43% stay tuned in to watch the ad and the rest of the video.

But here’s the silver lining: Young folks are more willing to watch ads. Among 18- to 24-year-olds, nearly 58% will stay tuned in during an ad.

The Internet TV show “Quarterlife” had reached nearly 4 million views online as of late last week. The show has been running online for a little more than two months. It’s headed for an on-air premiere on NBC on Sunday, March 2, at 9 p.m., a change from its scheduled Feb. 18 debut.

In other Internet TV show news, season two of “KateModern” is up and running on Bebo at http://katemodern.bebo.com.

The show averaged more than 1.5 million weekly views in its first season last summer and more than 35 million views total since launch. The show is produced by the creators of lonelygirl15.

What happens when Wikipedia, Facebook, eBay, Amazon and Craigslist meet at a party?

Check out this video from comedy troupe Those Aren’t Muskets! to find out.

Videos from Those Aren't Muskets! have been featured on the front pages of Cracked, Funny or Die, Veoh, Revver, Crackle and College Humor. You can check out more of their videos at www.thosearentmuskets.com.

Web video financing and syndication shop 60 Frames fired up some new Web series Wednesday, including “G.I.L.F.”

At first I thought, was the “G” for “girl?” Then I quickly realized it was for “grandma.” So if you want to see a real GILF and a funny new Web series, this is worth a peek.

60 Frames is distributing its show on MySpace, iTunes, Bebo and YouTube.

Missed Steve Jobs’ keynote at MacWorld yesterday? “Mahalo Daily’s” Veronica Belmont condensed the keynote into 60 seconds. That’s it—all you need of Steve. Plus, there’s a great section at the end with a quick collection of all of Steve’s superlatives, like “extraordinary,” “most successful,” “incredible,” “tremendous” and others.

Here you go!

And if you want the context behind the keynote, check out my New Media Minute report.

For exclusive video from MacWorld, click here.

In a sweeping move to capture the online movie rental market, Apple announced the availability of movie rentals on its iTunes service starting today with movies from all the major Hollywood studios.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the new offering during his keynote address at MacWorld in San Francisco on Tuesday.

Films from Paramount, Warner Bros., New Line Cinema, Universal, 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, Walt Disney, Touchstone, Miramax, MGM and Lionsgate now are available to rent on the iTunes service.

New releases will be available on the service 30 days after their DVD release, he said. Films currently on the new service include recent hits “Knocked Up,” “Ratatouille” and “Blades of Glory” as well as library titles such as “The Matrix.”

Apple is aiming to dominate the online movie business as it has done with online TV downloads and music. Apple will compete with services such as CinemaNow, Vongo and MovieLink, but none of those offerings has achieved much commercial traction.

Download-to-own services, which allow consumers to own a digital copy of a film, also have failed to take off. Wal-Mart recently shuttered its online video download service. Even Apple has only sold 7 million movies on its download-to-own movie service on iTunes in the last year. “That’s more than everyone else put together, but it did not meet our expectations. We think there is a better way to deliver movie content,” Mr. Jobs said.

Under the rental service, library titles cost $2.99 and new releases cost $3.99. Consumers will be able to watch the movies within 30 days of renting them, but the film must be watched within a 24-hour period.

“This will be a transformative version of the rental model, and we are very excited about it,” said Jim Gianopulos, chairman and CEO of 20th Century Fox, who joined Mr. Jobs on stage.

Mr. Jobs said he expects there to be 1,000 movies in the rental store by the end of February. The movies can be watched on a PC, Mac, iPod or iPhone. Consumers can start watching within 30 seconds of starting the download. “You can transfer while watching,” he said. “You can watch the first half on your computer, realize you have a flight to catch and transfer to your iPod.”

Mr. Jobs also announced a new version of Apple TV at a reduced price.

Apple TV is a device that lets consumers watch iTunes content on their TV sets, but it has failed to take off to a meaningful degree.

“We tried with Apple TV and designed it to be an accessory to iTunes and your computer. That’s not what people wanted. What people wanted was movies, movies, movies. We weren’t delivering that,” Mr. Jobs said.

The addition of movies to the device may give it a boost in the marketplace. Consumers can rent movies from the new iTunes rental store using Apple TV.

The updated Apple TV offering is available as a free software download to existing Apple TV users. The device now sells for $229, down from $299.

Mr. Jobs also said iTunes has sold more than 125 million TV shows since it began offering them more than two years ago.

You know by now that I can’t resist telling you about a good green series.

Here’s one to check out:

Online Videos by Veoh.com

The host has a fetching accent, the pace is fast, and the show brings you useful information on companies like Frito-Lay and their efforts to go green.

Along these lines, cable’s HGTV commissioned a study that found more than 84% of respondents believe “it is a moral obligation” to care for the environment and 86% already participate in at least one green activity, such as conserving energy at home, recycling, driving a fuel-efficient car, buying recycled products or picking up litter.

The study also found 81% of respondents think the current focus on environmental or "green" issues is “here to stay” rather than a “passing fad.”

Apple has sold 4 million iPhones since the product was introduced this summer, Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced at his MacWorld keynote in San Francisco. That's 20,000 iPhones each day.

Mr. Jobs said in the first quarter the iPhone was on the market, Apple had captured 19.5% of the smartphone market in the United States, second only to RIM's 39%. RIM makes Blackberries.

The Mac faithful are out in full force this morning for the Steve Jobs MacWorld keynote. Word is folks were lining up as early as 4 a.m. outside the Moscone Center in San Francisco this morning awaiting the appearance of their black turtleneck-clad leader. He takes the stage in four minutes. Goosebumps abound.

If I didn’t already work from home, I would definitely commute to work via helicopter.

So if any of you copter commuters are looking for a new pad, complete with a helipad, of course, check out new show “Cool Houses Daily” from frontdoor.com.

Frontdoor.com is the Scripps-owned site catering to home buyers that launched late last year. The site offers three online Web shows: “Savvy Woman Homebuyer,” “Cool Houses Daily” and “REwrap.”

Other episodes of “Cool Houses Daily” have included famous architect-designed homes, best bachelorette buys and island escape homes.

It’s a cute show, but what’s missing is the host. The show’s host never appears on-screen. We only hear her voice. I’d like to put a face with the name, though.

Want to know the new five new gadgets and gizmos from CES that might impact the TV and media business in the year ahead?

Here they are, in G4’s words:

--iRiver WING: Compact, ultra-portable PC with 4GB Flash storage, full QWERTY keyboard, 3.5-inch OLED touchscreen, WiFi. Also features instant message and SMS/MMS support.

--Sirius Backseat TV Audio/Video Tuner: SCV1 receives Sirius radio and family-friendly Sirius Backseat TV content. Mounts in vehicle to provide live audio and video.

--Archos 705 WiFi: Device combines portable media player with media storage center capabilities. Available in 80GB and 160GB models.

--Panasonic/Comcast AnyPlay Portable DVR/DVD/CD Player: Portable media player features DVR capabilities within portable media player.<