The Blog for Video 2.0

Hulu is launching a private beta of its web video service. The NBC/Fox venture was formed as a direct reaction to YouTube becoming the number one destination for viewing content owned by the major studios.

Time will tell what role Hulu plays as early reviews are mixed. It adds another player (no pun intened) to the video-on-the-web mix.

Labels: hulu, NBC, youtube

In preparations for the launch of Hulu.com, NBC has confirmed that it has removed it's content and channel from YouTube.

YouTube spokesperson Ricardo Reyes said in an emailed statement to http://newteevee:

"NBC informed us on Friday that they were taking down their branded channel and clips. Our relationship with NBC was a YouTube success story, so we hope NBC decides to post more original content and stay engaged with our users."

Labels: NBC, online video, youtube

YouTube today is announcing the beta of its video filtering technology.

The program calls for rights holders to upload versions of their copyrighted videos into a database,YouTube will then identify matches and pull them for review. Publishers will then have the choice of blocking the content or to monetize it via ads or run promos.

Labels: DRM, Google, online video, youtube

In continuation of the ad revenue sharing model that is gaining ground in the online video world, Web publishers that participate in Google Inc.'s AdSense ad distribution network will now be able to make money by offering ad-supported video clips from Google's YouTube video sharing site.

For advertisers, the program opens their video-based ads for distribution across the AdSense network, instead of being limited to the YouTube site. Meanwhile, video producers get a chance to generate revenue from their clips.

The video clips will be delivered within "a customized, embedded player that's ad supported," Google announced on Tuesday.

Online video is currently monetized in one of three ways: share of advertising revenue, paid download-to-own, or subscription based services.

Labels: adsense, Google, online video, video distribution, video sharing, youtube

HungryFlix.com is now holding an Apple TV Giveaway. Just visit the site and create an account to be registered to win a 40GB Apple TV.

We love watching great films in the comfort of the family room or den. We know that you will too. So join now and get your chance to win.

HungryFlix.com is the spot for independent film downloads All content is compatible with iPod, PSP and now Apple TV.

Labels: apple tv, contest, download, movies, win, youtube

Move over YouTube---you can now view HungryFlix trailers right on your iPhone.

We are proud to release a Beta version of the HungryFlix Trailer application for iPhone users.

Click on a thumbnail to view the trailer. You will see a QuickTime image with a blue play button. Click the blue play button. Bbe patient for the file to download.

http://www.hungryflix.com/iphone.php

Labels: apple, indie film, iphone, movies, trailers, video, youtube

HungryFlix.com is holding our first contest, an Apple TV giveaway. Just regsiter for an account between July 20 - Sep 30, 2007 and you will be entered for a chance to win.

HungryFlix is the home of indie movie downloads for iPhone, iPod, PSP and Apple TV.

We are extremely excited about Apple TV and the opportunities it will open up for independent filmmakers and producers.

Stop by, create an account and download some great indie films today.

For contest rules please click here.

Labels: apple tv, contest, free, giveaway, hungryflix, iphone, movie downloads, movies, win, youtube

We've been working hard to fix issues with the web site in order to make everything work well under the iPhone's Safari. Good news is that progress has been made. You can now view MPEG4 trailers right on your iPhone!

So for all you movie fans on the go, you can now view free trailers right on your iPhone. Move over YouTube--HungryFlix is coming.

We are thrilled with this development. To see some examples visit:

The Prisoner:
http://www.hungryflix.com/view_media_movie.php?mid=550

Wages of Sin:
http://www.hungryflix.com/view_media_movie.php?mid=488

The trailer window will appear with a small blue "Play" button in the lower right corner. Click that to activate the iPhone's built-in QuickTime player.

Labels: digital video, hungryflix, iphone, movies, trailers, video, youtube

Unless you've been living in a cave, under a rock, or on the Dark Side of the Moon you know that on Friday June 29th Apple's new iPhone finally hit store shelves. Thousands of Apple and mobile phone fans waited in hundreds of lines for hours just for the privledge of dropping $499-$599 on the shiny new mobile phone/internet device/widescreen iPod. Analysts and tech geeks hailed the iPhone's arrival as a momentus event in the cell phone industry. I'm here to tell you that history will show the iPhone's release as one of the single biggest events in the history of independent filmmaking.

Hun? What, exactly, does the iPhone--a mobile phone/internet device/widescren iPod--have to do with indie filmmaking? Well, a lot. The movie download market must prepare for a great new phase as we look forward to more and more great devices capable of playing our content.

For independent content to survive and thrive, it must move to new delivery devices like Apple TV, iPod and now the iPhone. Support for these new devices will lead to growth in the audience for indie content. Many "mainstream" consumers will not view indie films at screenings, festivals or DVD. The films are too hard to find, often barried in video rental store shelves or playing in small art house theaters. This has been the case for the past few decades. Once every five years there is a breakout hit--a Clerks or Blair Witch--that gives the indie community something to rally around. The independent movie press declare, "We've arrived. This is the 'Year of the Indie'". Just as quickly as these hits arise, the excitement dies down and the great content made in the aftermath gets lost in the shuffle.

Now, for what may truely be the first time, consumers will have in their hands a great portable media device. You may argue that the iPod with video or the PSP have existed for a few years. But, these are devices that most people do not *have* to carry at all times. These are "luxury" devices that we carry when we want to. Cell phones are vastly different. Most Americans now carry their cell phone at all times--to the gym, on the bus, walking through the mall, at the ball game. We always have our phones with us. Now that Apple has delivered "the best iPod ever built" (Apple's words) and snuck it inside a phone, we now have a captive audience that will always have viewing capability.

This is, or has the potential to be, huge. Just look no farther than the iPhone's home screen. Right there on that gorgious 3.5" screen is a direct link to everyone's favorite dancing-cats-meet-dancing-teenagers clip sharing site, YouTube. Think about that. Apple put YouTube directly on the home screen of their revolutionary new device. Now, this could be entirely motivated by a new advertisting or search revenue deal Apple has struck with Google. But even if it is, the fact that YouTube is on the home screen of the iPhone can not be ignored.

Apple believes in mobile entertainment. They created the iPod so that we all could enjoy all our music at any time or place. Now, we are closer than ever to that dream for video. The iPhone's 3.5" screen has a resolution higher than many computer monitors. It displays MPEG4 H.264 video beautifully--better than any portable device ever has. These quality features combined with the simple fact that people will actually have the device with them, lead to great market opportunities.

Of course, the iPhone is, for now, a niche device. It's high price tag mean that it won't be found in the hands of many teens or college students in the near future. But just as with all technology, the price will drop over time. The iPhone will also force other handset makers and cell providers to design better devices. Devices that compete with the iPhone. When this happens, consumers win.

HungryFlix.com is ready to help independent producers, filmmakers and musicians in this new distribution world. We believe that this new class of mobile devices will open the doors to great indie content. It is time to get onboard. There are hundreds of thousands of movie and music fans out there with new devices that are hungry for great content. Feed Your Portable!

Labels: hungryflix, iphone, ipod, iTunes, movie downloads, movies, online video, video download, youtube

According to a study from market research firm NPD Group, Apple Inc.’s iTunes Store has 9.8 percent of overall retail music sales, making it the third largest music retailer in the United States. Amazon.com and Target captured 6.7 percent and 6.6 percent of the market, respectively.

Apple's iTunes trails only Wal-Mart with 15.8% and Best Buy, which as 13.8%.

This is continued good news for the downloadable media market. Consumers have chosen convience, ease of use and quality provided by iTunes.

While the music download market grows in maturity, the movie downloads market continued steady growth through 2007 with sites like HungryFlix.com leading the way.

Labels: download, hungryflix, iTunes, music, music downloads, youtube

TUAW, among many other sites, is reporting that YouTube is in the process of transcoding some portion of their catalog from Flash Video to H.264. The move is in order to support Apple TV and, some claim, the iPhone.

It is not clear if this signals YouTube's move away from Flash or just the addition of a format. What is clear is that the Apple/Google partnership is working wonderfully and bringing great new tools to end users.

The support for H.264 on the web's largest video site is very interesting.

Labels: apple tv, iphone, iTunes, youtube

Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced at the Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital conference that the Apple TV will soon be upgraded with a 160GB version and with support for downloading clips from YouTube.

The more open support of a-non iTunes video source is great news for Apple TV owners. It is also interesting to note that third party developers have already hacked Apple TV with a YouTube plugin.

This could lead to future deals with other providers of movie downloads such as HungryFlix.com.

Labels: apple tv, hungryflix, iTunes, youtube

NewTeeVee's Om Malik is reporting that YouTube is going to pay their top users. While the plans are not crystal clear, it seems that YouTube will be sharing some portion of AdSense revenue with their current top producers.

The company will launch a program that puts the creators of some of the more popular YouTube channels — including Lonelygirl15, LisaNova, HappySlip, renetto, Smosh, and valsartdiary — on the same playing field as large media partners like CBS.

Time will tell in how effective this program is...it is interesting that YouTube has limited the inital rollout to just "star" users. HungryFlix.com has run with a revenue sharing model from Day One of launch in 2005.

Labels: hungryflix, revenue sharing, video, youtube

Viacom has sued YouTube for $1 Billion, that's Billion with a "B", claiming copyright infringement. It seems most of the Web 2.0 fans are claming this is a simple case of "new companies innovate, old tired companies litigate".

This is not the view of this blog or http://www.hungryflix.com.

Much of YouTube's value does indeed come from the copyrighted works of others. If all copyrighted material was removed from YouTube how many visitors and page views would the site have?

Our mission at http://www.hungryflix.com is to ensure that content providers are credited and paid for their work.

Read more here http://googlewatch.eweek.com/content/youtube/18_reasons_why_google_and_youtube_are_guilty_of_copyright_infringement.html

Labels: copyright, dmca, Google, online distribution, online video, youtube

BBC will be offering three YouTube channels - one for news and two for entertainment. The channels will showcase short clips of BBC content, and the corporation will also get a share of the ad revenues generated on these channels.

These are non-exclusive and set to run for several years.

The main BBC entertainment channel will be free of ads and used primarily to drive traffic to BBC’s own websites. A second entertainment channel, BBC Worldwide, will feature three to six minute long clips from popular BBC content. These will have pre-roll ads. The news channel, which will be launched later this year, will show about 30 news clips per day. These will have ads, and for that reason, these clips can be seen outside the UK only.

Labels: online distribution, online video, streaming, youtube

More news from the big boys in the video 2.0 world...The Wall Street Journal is reporting that A deal between Google Inc. and CBS Corp. that would let YouTube users watch clips from CBS shows such as “The Late Show with David Letterman,” has unraveled.

The two companies had been closing in on a multi-year deal but could not agree on key issues such as the length of the partnership.

Traditional media companies are looking for ways to court online users as viewers split their leisure time surfing the Web and using digital media devices like Apple Inc.’s iPod. While Google/YouTube, Joost and other large providers continue to look toward big media, independent content providers such as filmmakers, musicians and video producers can find distribution for their movies and videos at http://www.hungryflix.com.

The talks may resume, and the two companies have agreeed to work on smaller scale initiatives in the short term.

HungryFlix provides video downloads for the iPod, PSP and computer.

Labels: Google, media, online distribution, video 2.0, video distribution, youtube

Viacom has signed a deal to deliver television and theatrical programming to to the new Joost Internet TV service.

TV shows expected to debut once the deal is closed include MTV's "Laguna Beach," "Beavis and Butthead," "The Real World," "Punk'd" and "My Super Sweet 16." Comedy Central will provide episodes from "Stella," "Comedy Central Presents" and "Freak Show." BET's offerings will include "Beef The Series," "DMX: Soul of a Man," "Comic View" and "American Gangster." Country Music Television, MTV2, Logo, Spike TV, mtvU, VH1 and Gametrailers.com will also provide content.

The deal is clearly targeted at teens and young adults, a huge advertising demographic and one that is open to viewing content on their computers.

Joost has been receiving positive reviews for their rich client software and great user experience. Joost was formed last year by Niklas Zennstrom and Janus Friis, founders of the Internet calling service Skype.

Also of note is the fact that Viacom has selected Joost over YouTube/Google. It seems that YouTube will now look to form partnerships of it's own and the IPTV space will enter it's next phase.

While the large corporations move forward, independent filmmakers, video producers and content providers can find distribution for their films at HungryFlix.

Labels: iptv, joost, media, online distribution, tv, video 2.0, video distribution, youtube