Jaffe Juice

MSNFound....very interesting viral campaign which

MSNFound....very interesting viral campaign which uses search as the links between touchpoints e.g. from msnfound --> search: hypnodragon --> cy. Using a cast of characters and their "finds", I have to say this is really well done. Fake blogs are risky, but I think they've done this carefully and methodically to be part of something bigger...this also dials into what I would call a new role for advertising, "demonstration" - what better way to sell search than through actually using search. More on this later no doubt, but thus far....me likey.

Is Google the new Fox (20th Century that is)?

Google Unveils Movie Showtime Search: "Google Unveils Movie Showtime Search"

There are 4 portals: Yahoo!, MSN, AOL & Google. And if you doubted it before, this is just another proof point of where its/they're heading.

Let's recap: CBS, NBC, ABC and Fox? :)

My Super Bowl's bigger than yours

al.com: TV: "Super Bowl audience shrinks, but still big

Tuesday, February 08, 2005

The most preliminary ratings numbers for Sunday's Super Bowl XXXIX broadcast on Fox are in, and the early Nielsen ratings tally counts 78.2 million viewers.

Certainly there'll be nothing else on TV this whole year watched by so many folks, but that count is measurably smaller than the 89.79 million sets of eyeballs that watched the Big Game last year on CBS.

In fact, if the final national ratings come in close to the earliest numbers from Nielsen Media Research, this could be the least-watched Super Bowl since 73.85 million viewers tuned in for the event back in 1990.
The last time Fox aired the Super Bowl was in 2002, and that broadcast garnered 86.80 million viewers.

Aaah 1990, that was a good year.....

- Although the Bush administration doubled its estimate for bailing out the savings & loan industry to $130,000,000,000, congress appropriated half that figure.

- Former Philippines first lady Imelda Marcos went on trial in the U.S. for fraud charges.

- Michael Milken, the so-called Junk Bond King, was convicted for violating securities laws. He was sentenced to 10 years, fined $200,000,000 and ordered to pay back $400,000,000.

- A House subcommittee determined that Americans were spending $30,000,000,000 a year on weight-loss products or programs that were ineffective or threatened their health.

- Ivana Trump filed for a divorce from Donald Trump.

- 87 died when the illegal Happy Land Social Club burned in the Bronx, New York. Julio Gonzales was later convicted for arson and 87 counts of murder.

- Operation Desert Shield consisted of 527,000 American military personel sent to Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf after Iraq invaded Kuwait.

- Officials said the AIDS epidemic was spreading throughout all societal factions in America at an alarming rate. Act Up! members disrupted the opening of The CBS Evening News With Dan Rather, chanting, "Fight AIDS, not Arabs!" The opening segment was re-recorded for broadcast in the western time zones.

- The Supreme Court ruled that police must stop interrogating a suspect after her or she requests an attorney be present.

- "I've fallen and I can't get up!" became a catch phrase due to a frequently-running TV ad for Lifeline, an emergency call necklace marketed to seniors.

- Puppeteer and Muppets co-creator Jim Henson died at age 53 from a strain of strep known as "the flesh-eating virus."

- Kevin Costner won Best Picture and Best Director Oscars for Dances With Wolves.

- TV's Beverly Hills 90210 debuted. Cheers, thirtysomething and Murphy Brown were top-rated shows.

- Hit songs included Escapade by Janet Jackson, Love Takes Time by Mariah Carey, Black Velvet by Alannah Miles, Step By Step by New Kids On The Block, It Must Have Been Love by Roxette and How Am I Supposed To Live Without You? by Michael Bolton.

Crazy similarities with today...but bottom line is that the Super Bowl's audience shrunk EVEN WITH last year's hooplah as one reason to tune in AND an extremely close game.

In this case, maybe little

In this case, maybe little TiVo is smiling as the Brand which steps in to sweep it off its little feet is none other than Apple, as is rumored in this Reuters article. 

Adrants: Comcast Expands Ads-On-Demand Service

"Comcast Expands Ads-On-Demand Service"

This is the beginning of a landmark shift in the way commercials are distributed, viewed, and ultimately priced,

I'll get back to you with more information on the subject...sufficed to say, it's rather crude and elementary right now and I guess, banks on consumers actually seeking out commercials ala their V.O.D. services.

There are several impediments:
1) penetration/adoption of functionality
2) behavioral shift i.e. getting people to change the way they watch TV
3) will people (given the choice) watch ads? D'uh
4) Inventory issues - if I'm seeking a Jaguar ad, will it be there?
5) Priceing - are we talking cost per view here? Is this the genesis of performance-based brand advertising?

New study from Gallup about media habvits from kids 13-17

"Go Log On To Your Room, Johnny: Kids Rooms Prove Multimedia Paradise"

A new survey from Gallup points out that nearly two-thirds--64 percent--of U.S. teens ages 13 to 17 have televisions in their bedrooms, and 28 percent say they have a computer with Internet access in their rooms....

What struck me with this report was the emphasis being placed on TV (with less being offered up to the Web and especially gaming) What really gave this away was the references to the Kids TV Upfront (see below)

Despite the seeming ubiquity of instant messaging, in what still must be a burst of good news for those following the Kids Television Upfront, home computers haven’t yet reached the saturation point that televisions have--probably because they are more expensive, Gallup says--which may partly explain why only 28 percent of teens say they have one in their rooms.

I don't doubt the research, its methodology and certainly not the company behind it...I just wonder about the people pulling the trigger and their level of awareness/comfort against new marketing avenues.

While I disagree with the expense part of the equation (cost continue to decrease; Dell's sells its Dimension Desktop currently at $439 with terms as low as $14/month), I do think that the subversive aspects of the Web are a challenge. That being said....there are sophisticated enough parental controls; kids aged 13-17 are not exactly dumb AND as deplorable as these cases are, is it possible that they are the exception as opposed to the norm?

Kudos on calling this site,

Kudos on calling this site, "mybigball" - it's an (w)episodic "viral" attempt to sell a bunch of Sega games (Super Monkey Ball) 

This campaign banks on several key assumptions:
1) People will *want* to tune in and watch the episodes
2) They'll *want* to send them to their friends
3) They'll give up their previous e-mail addresses in order to be reminded to keep tuning in...because let's face it, people are forgetful
4) They'll care enough to pre-order the video game

The key questions from my side are the following:
1) Is the content compelling enough?
2) Is there any/enough incentive to forward to friends?
3) Is there some kind of unique approach undertaken this time to differentiate this against other so-called viral programs?

I'm not convinced to be honest. The episodes are quirky, but I don't know that I care enough to keep coming back. Am I the target audience...no? But still...

I have to say that this effort seems lazy...almost like they're trying to follow a formulaic approach without necessarily challenging themselves to innovate in the process.

I also feel that against the success and heavenly bar set by Beta 7 that Sega sure has made it tough to measure up against previous efforts.

I really do like the approach of an episodic story which leads up to a moment of truth which coincides with a launch such as the game going on sale. The fact that the content is video as opposed to flash animation for example shows a commitment to the space and the fact the quality and production budgets are on the up and up.

My caution to marketers and their agencies is to not fall into a trap of complacency. Keep on raising the bar; keep on experimenting...ultimately your efforts will be judged by the same viral metrics which you so desperately covet.

I receive an MSNBC breaking

I receive an MSNBC breaking alert on my MSN Messenger about a "US Citizen being held in Saudi Arabia accused of trying to assassinate President Bush" and click on it to find out more. The article in question isn't even the featured piece. How is this different from the Pepsi-iTunes disconnect between advertising and distribution (no Pepsi's in-store carrying the promotional bottle caps)? 

SEIFERT AND EARLY FOUND GUILTY

SEIFERT AND EARLY FOUND GUILTY: "SEIFERT AND EARLY FOUND GUILTY
Jury Returns Verdict on Second Day of Deliberations"

One word: scapegoat. Whether guilty or not....this sends a tremor through the agency world. One that is going to take a long time to recover from.

Let me just say that the agency world became even a less desirable place to work today :(

AI Bashing....(again)

It was clear to me last night that this is the final season we'll see the Cleavers (Ryan, Randy, Paula, Simon) together. Ryan and Randy were visible bored out of their skulls and Paula and Simon can't stick each other.

On the flipside, the producers are still not able to inject any life into this cash-cow. The voting is still forced and contrived - SMS'ing for Cingular customers only (uh - why don't we just exclude a major portion of the population) and the telephone (operator, give me 911)

Why are we not seeing online registration and voting?

Also, why is the voting procedure so mysterious? Why can't we see the number of votes each person gets (better still, in real time? So what if the person going first appears to have the advantage; it's the opposite on Fear Factor)

Answer: Because there are only about 1,000 warped teenagers that are dialling until their fingers fall off. OK, it's not that bad, but it's not far off...

Jaffe Out