Coverage in the local paper The Gazette, by Roberto Rocha:
As for Karbasfrooshan’s original bet on numbers – on compiling a vast video library – that also worked. When WatchMojo boasted that its videos have been streamed 50 million times, the influential technology blog TechCrunch noticed. So did other media, including The Gazette.
Indeed. The article touches on a few points I touch on, including UGC:
When the Web was all atingle over user-generated video – those one-hit amateur productions that made YouTube what it is – Ashkan Karbasfrooshan wasn’t buying it. Sure they’re fun, but advertisers won’t go for it, he thought. What the web needs is professional-quality video.
So he started WatchMojo.com, which today has a library of 4,200 short videos spanning dozens of topics and that have been viewed 50 million times.
But while you can find most videos on the WatchMojo website, that’s not how they make their bread and butter. It’s by selling videos to websites hungry for advertising dollars but lacking good content.
“User-generated content bellyflopped,” said Karbasfrooshan, CEO of the 10-person, ultra-casual outfit in Mile End. “Sure it changed the rules of media, since now anyone can be a publisher. But in terms of marketing and advertising it doesn’t work. Big brands don’t want to be next to racy content.”
Enjoy the article here.
Next “fad” to go off the rails? “Episodic content”. Trust me, the notion that online viewers want to see made for web “Series” is even more ludicrous than marketers embracing UGC. Online video content works when the shit stands on its own two feet, not when it’s tied to some ongoing train wreck. Sure, the odd “series” works, but the idea that bankrolling a TV-like drama series on the Web is a dummy proof recipe for success is stoopid.
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Interesting to note the following from MySpace’s increase in professionally-produced premium videos at the expense of user-generated content, via Tech Crunch:
Like every other video site, MySpace is increasing the amount of professionally-produced premium videos because those are more appealing to advertisers. It sees the user-generated videos (UGC) more as a communication feature for MySpace members. MySpace’s video VP Jason Kirk tells me:
We have seen big increases in premium intent viewing over UGC. Premium content views probably close to doubled in the last year. USG video is part of the social network part of our site.
This echoes what I’ve been saying for some time now: social media totally obliterates the rules of publishing and media in general, but it does little to change advertising. In fact, the only real impact on advertising is an influx of cheap inventory and a harder job of cutting through the noise. But the notion that marketers will embrace social media is plain misguided, because the problem with UGC’s “value proposition” is that
- direct marketers (who might not mind UGC’s low quality and raciness) don’t like the low performance
whereas
- branded advertisers (who care less about the ROI in the short term) cannot take the risk to market alongside it.
This might hurt a lot of people’s feelings because for the past five years we’ve seen tens of billions poured into monetizing social media and we’re now seeing that it is impossible. Never say never? I’m saying never!
