The idea behind RedLasso is deceptively simple. The service lets bloggers search and share TV clips online. Unfortunately, once you get past that one-line description, things get a lot more complicated. What about copyright? Distribution agreements? Who should get paid for content reuse? After sitting down with RedLasso’s CEO Kenyon Hayward, I came to two conclusions. First, most people are looking at RedLasso from the wrong angle. And second, if TV networks don’t start signing deals with the company, they’ll find they have to build or buy an equivalent service in the near future anyway.

Above everything else, I now think of RedLasso as a reference tool. The company catalogs broadcast content and brings it to a platform (the Web) suitable for searching and sorting. Broadcasters should love this. It creates a way for them to monetize chunks of their content without having to do a speck of work. You know all that money broadcasters have made off traditional syndication deals? RedLasso gives them an opportunity to do the same thing on the Web, but with news instead of entertainment, and in a format that works for the online world - short clips supported by embedded advertising from video ad networks.

So why are the networks sending RedLasso cease-and-desist letters? Ken Hayward makes clear that RedLasso isn’t interested in replaying network shows for free online, and raw content is only available for a limited period of time. Presumably the networks are concerned because they’re still hung up on the control issue. It’s their content after all. Shouldn’t the networks get control over how it’s used?

The answer of course is: not anymore. Ceding control to viewers is what has made Web video so popular. And the fact that RedLasso can help the networks make money on such a turbulent platform should be appealing. If the networks don’t recognize that now, they’ll likely come to understand it as Web video viewing continues to skyrocket in the coming months and years.

Now here’s the reality check. RedLasso has a lot going for it, including huge viewership numbers, but it’s got a lot of obstacles too. Even with the money the company’s raised, it’s bringing in no revenue right now because it won’t roll ads until content deals are in place. It can keep going for a while, but given how notoriously slow-moving big media is, the question arises: Can RedLasso survive long enough to bring the networks on board and achieve real legitimacy?

(more…)

Earlier this week I sat down with Redlasso CEO Kenyon Hayward for an update on the Redlasso business and the company’s ongoing negotiating process with big media networks. There’s much to write about on that front, but since I won’t get to that today, I thought in the meantime I’d share a bizarre coincidence I encountered while testing out the Redlasso service.

Redlasso uses several tools for video search on its site, including meta data search, closed caption service and phonetic word recognition. I tried searching for WiMAX clips first, but didn’t get anywhere except some phonetic results that didn’t actually have anything to do with WiMAX. So then I searched on Comcast. Several hits came back, and I clicked on a clip from ESPN. Interestingly, a DTV transition ad came up. It hadn’t occurred to me that commercials would be in the mix, but of course that makes sense.

However, the exceedingly weird moment came when I realized who was starring in the Comcast ad. Standing in front of me on the computer screen was a guy I went to college with. Actually, it was the guy I performed with in our school’s production of Carousel. That performance as Julie was one of my last hurrahs in the theater world, but “Billy” has gone on to Broadway, print ads, and apparently Comcast DTV commercials.

What a strange, strange and small world.

I’ve heard a lot on “advanced advertising” in my day job recently, so when the opportunity came up to talk with Revision3 CEO Jim Louderback (formerly of PC Magazine) about their deal with VideoClix, I could hardly turn it down. VideoClix does pop-up content for Internet video, (think an online, ad-driven version of MTV’s pop-up video) and Revision3 is now planning to use VideoClix in some of its online shows, starting with a premier VideoClix-enabled episode of Diggnation.

Since advertisers have been slobbering over the idea of interactive advertising for a decade or more, I was anxious to hear how well VideoClix is working for Revision3. Disappointingly, there’s no answer on that yet. Not only is Revision3 not releasing specifics on that front (not surprising with only one VideoClix-enabled show up), but it turns out VideoClix, at this point, is just a piece of spaghetti that Revision3 is throwing at the proverbial wall. According to Louderback, Revision3 is a leader in product placement, online video sponsorships and is even part of Google’s early-stage Adsense-for-video program. In other words, while the company definitely likes VideoClix, Revision3 is hardly betting the farm on it. The company is really just trying something new and hoping it makes some money.

As a consumer, I haven’t remotely made up my mind about VideoClix either. The Diggnation demo is very cool, but in a novelty kind of way, not an I-want-this-on-all-my-TV-shows kind of way. I can see an ongoing appeal for non-fiction shows like Diggnation, but I think I’d find the feature highly irritating while watching, for instance, Battlestar Galactica. I really don’t want to know that I can get Starbuck’s boots at LL Bean. (My suspension of disbelief is stretched far enough with BSG, thank you…)

Despite not giving me any reason to believe that VideoClix is the one great answer to the problem of monetizing Internet video, Louderback did provide some heartening stats on Internet advertising in general. For example, viewers of Revision3 shows have very high unaided recall rates of sponsored products and companies. And, according to Louderback, 48% of viewers have purchased a product or service from one of Revision3’s sponsors.

In addition, without being able to provide any details, Revision3 is apparently pretty happy with VideoClix. The company was planning one VideoClix-enabled show monthly, but is now thinking of upping that number.

So has the Internet finally made interactive television advertising possible? It’s not clear. The answer is probably yes for certain kinds of entertainment and no for others. Sometimes interactivity is good. And sometimes I just want to watch my TV… even on the Internet.

Being The Cable Show, there were plenty of booth stunts at last week’s event in New Orleans. Among them was FOX’s display of beds (yes, mattresses) with large-screen TV projections. See the video above for a quick look. It was shot by a partner in crime (Thanks, Amy!), and that is me you see taking photos in the clip.

Similar to TiVo’s “Thumbs Up” advertising, DISH Network customers will shortly be presented with interactive ads from NBC. However, instead of DISH driving advertising sales it appears that the network will leverage their existing advertisers to broker deals and/or as a means of driving traffic to their own TV properties. From the press release:

NBC Universal [14 networks] will offer the ability to purchase advertisements with interactive trigger capabilities as a way to enhance their campaigns on NBC broadcasts delivered through DISH Network’s satellite service. The interactive triggers allow viewers to select an icon displayed during a commercial that will take them to a page to obtain more information about the advertiser. When finished, viewers are returned to their programming at the exact place they exited. The advertiser information page may contain details about a product, service or more. NBC will also be able to provide advertisers with detailed reports about viewer participation with DISH Network’s interactive products

Disclosure: I’m employed by Sling Media, a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar, which is a DISH Network hardware and service provider. I’m also a frequent Starbucks customer and Last100 reader. No animals were harmed in the writing of this post. I give thanks to Al Gore for blessing us with his bountiful series of tubes.

TiVo’s getting a little bit social (hey, it’s the thing to do) in launching “My TV” on Facebook. As you would expect, one can add, rate, and review all sorts of television programming. There’s also links to online scheduling (for us TiVo customers), but no integration with Facebook’s existing TV show favorites or a method to import your existing Season Passes, Now Playing list, etc. Interestingly, TiVo didn’t name the widget after themselves and clearly indicates one doesn’t need to be a TiVo owner to participate. Which is a smart marketing move. (via Gizmo Lovers) (more…)

Toyota’s got you (me) covered on TiVo with a $5 Amazon gift card bribe in exchange for…? I assume whatever email they send containing a coupon code will also contain Toyota Corolla advertising. Most of the spam I receive doesn’t offer anything worthwhile, so I’ll take the cash:

The first 5000 people who do this before March 26 will get $5 to spend at Amazon.com. If you miss that boat, you can have a go at it again between March 27 and April 2.

• Press the TiVo button
• Select “Showcases & TV Guideâ€?
• Select “Corolla the Xâ€?
• Select “Get a $5 Amazon.com Gift Cardâ€?

(Thanks for the tip, Glenn!)