Presidential elections always represent sea changes in the use of marketing tools (including local marketing tools). The Internet is an increasingly big part of it. Mostly, it is used for raising money. This time around, it has also been exciting…
I didn't realize when I declared my scientific experiment to go on an all-Hulu diet this week that the site turns 1 today. It seems like yesterday that the site launched as a joint venture between News Corp. and NBC Universal…
I just paid a $300 cable bill (three months). This is partly because I’ve had little time for bills, but also because my monthly bill is over $100. That includes basic cable channels plus the $40 package that bundles HBO.…
EveryZing this week launched a new video player whose features carry the company's emphasis on video search engine optimization, searchability and good content indexing. Like many of the other video search companies that employ a combination of video indexing technologies,…
Google announced today that it will partner with Harris Corp. in order to tap into its television inventory. Harris has an existing network that places television ads where there is remnant inventory. According to the release: Using current traffic system…
We’re just about ready to go with Interactive Local Media 2008, which is Nov. 19-21 in Santa Clara, in the heart of Silicon Valley. It should be a very important, game-defining event -- and the first one for The Kelsey…
Getting people to submit reviews is hard. We’ve seen incentives such as $5 coffee cards (a lot), $10 gas cards and direct donations to charity (Insider Pages’ current model). People complain that reports that are stimulated by such efforts aren’t…
Today saw a couple of announcements in the local online video space: Spotzer has announced a deal with Hearst-owned White Directory Publishers that brings its ready-made video ad platform to the publisher's advertisers. Similar to its recent deal with MerchantCircle,…
Spotzer, an Amsterdam company selling a "ready to air" video solution for SMBs, has made clear it is serious about partnering with traditional media channels to brings its solution to small businesses. The company announced today that it has brought on…
There's not a lot of doubt we could see advertising slumps across different forms of media, if we haven't already. How will this affect video advertising -- especially video at the local level that we've seen pick up over the…
Earlier in the week, Jivox grew its publisher network where it distributes the self-serve videos that small-business advertisers create. Like a growing crop of local video producers, these are stock videos that are customized with text and logos. I just…
OK, we’ve got the format(s) and “best and brightest” speaker roster set for Interactive Local Media: Extending Local Channels, which is Nov. 19-21 in Santa Clara, California, next to San Jose. At the top of the list is Angie Hicks,…
Comcast, the nation’s largest cable TV company, is set to upsell its vast body of video advertisers via a new deal with Mixpo, the Seattle-based venture-backed company dedicated to making video "actionable" across multiple platforms. For Mixpo, the deal represents…
To follow up on the news item this morning that Spotzer has partnered with MerchantCircle, I was able to catch up with CEO Andy Klein here at the DMS conference. The deal will most notably bring ready-made video ads to…
Today sees a couple of more announcements in the local video space, both involving companies with a big presence here at The Kelsey Group's DMS conference. First off, local search platform provider Innovectra has partnered with Digital Media Communications to…
TKG's Directional Media Strategies conference kicked off this morning, and we'll blog most sessions here. There was an interesting session run by Michael Taylor throughout the morning to kick off our local sales training series. Direct local sales is a…
The online video space is crowded these days, so having a clear point of differentiation is critical. One of the more interesting players in this burgeoning field is Spotzer, which is trying to bridge the gap between quality content and…
Closely related to our recent ongoing coverage of Google's offline media efforts (TKG client Advisory released Friday as well), the company has signed a deal with NBC Universal to further push ad buying through its Google TV Ads platform. Google…
Local video production provider Mixpo today emboldened its pipeline into the elusive small-business marketplace by announcing four new channel partners. These include a number of traditional media channels that have online local search destinations, such as PegasusNews, SiliconValleyOnline and KGO…
In what amounts to another vote of confidence from business and financial communities for self-serve video ad production, StudioNow has received $2.38 million in private equity. Funding came from existing investor Claritas Capital plus Clayton Associates. This adds to the…
