Streaming Media - 2008 Industry Sourcebook - (Page 157) online content that delivers viewers Rocketboom and Quarterlife couldn’t be more different in their approach to creating content. But each one presents a valuable lesson: Match the production values to the creative goals. by Max Bloom w hat is content? Is it a hard-hitting edition of PBS’ Frontline, Will Smith’s latest multimillion-dollar film extravaganza, or the video streamed from a teenage exhibitionist’s bathroom webcam? The answer, of course, is “Yes.” The citizens of the world harbor a wide variety of interests, and content works to the extent that it appeals to those interests. The annual Victoria’s Secret fashion show works, as does an online video detailing the intricacies of a successful open-heart surgery. In either case, enough people have to watch to justify the effort and expense of producing and delivering the content. Because of the breadth of the internet, myriad content types will find their niche audiences. However, to achieve commercial success, those audiences must be substantial enough to pique the interest of advertisers. Two offerings from different corners of the media universe, Rocketboom and Quarterlife, are attracting big audiences, and both are hoping that big ad dollars will follow. formats and generates hundreds of thousands of unique views each day. Rocketboom employs a single anchorperson (the charming Joanne Colan) and stringers around the world to cover a wide range of information, from top news stories to quirky internet culture. Rocketboom’s tongue-in-cheek take on current events evolved from Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update by way of The Daily Show. Keys to its success have been its lack of self-reverence and a 3-minute length that doesn’t abuse internet users’ notoriously short attention spans. Rocketboom’s challenge is to generate a steady flow of content that is original and compelling enough to draw people in. “What it comes down to is our ability to curate,” says Baron, now the company’s CEO. “The one skill that’s essential is just having good taste.” Quarterlife In contrast to Rocketboom’s up-from-the-basement origins, Quarterlife, a new web series that debuted on MySpaceTV.com in November 2007, emanates from two of Hollywood’s most successful film and television veterans—and sports a budget of more than $400,000 per the equivalent of one hour-long TV episode (i.e., six 8minute webisodes) to prove it. Partners Marshall Herskowitz and Ed Zwick (Thirtysomething, My So-Called Life, Blood Diamond, Legends of the Fall) created and financed the first six hour-long episodes of the series, which was originally shot as a pilot for ABC and rejected, before being reconceived as an internet series. WWW.STREAMINGMEDIA.COM Rocketboom Rocketboom, a 3-minute daily video blog produced in New York City, is successful under almost any criteria—the prototypical minimalist viral phenomenon. With minimal production equipment (a consumer-level video camera, a laptop, two lights, a desk and a map, and Final Cut Pro) and no promotion budget, Rocketboom has spawned a massive audience through word-of-mouth. Founded by Andrew Baron in 2004, Rocketboom now streams in most available 157 how-to’s and tutorials how to deliver http://MySpaceTV.com http://WWW.STREAMINGMEDIA.COM
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