CIQ Headlines for February 6, 2007

CIQ Headlines

Old Face, New Challenges–(New York Times) At 26, Jeff Zucker was the executive producer of the Today Show. Now, at 41, he becomes CEO of NBC Universal. CIQ: Whatta job! Leading an old network in an age of media revolution. 

Wiki Comes to Search–(Information Week) Wikipedia founder, Jimmy Wales is taking on Google, harnassing the power of the community in search. Instead of a closely held proprietary search algorithm, Wales envisions an open-source approach. CIQ: Wales makes a compelling argument for transparency. After all, we don’t know why certain search results come up first in Google. And the stakes can be millions of dollars for companies.

AOL Chief Calls for Better Ads— (Advertising Age) Just like we said yesterday, the current state of online advertising will not support high-value CPMs. Randy Falco asks the audience at the iMedia Brand Summit to, “Help us find our version of 30-second spot on the internet. Define new interactive campaigns and make display ads more engaging.”

We Need Better Online Ads

CIQ Trends

We have a lot to learn from the truly tacky. Take the dancing cowboys from LowerMyBill.com. According to the New York Times, the “two-stepping cowboys, rooftop dancers and weird tattoos, have been hugely successful for company and led to $400 million purchase in 2005 by credit agency Experian”

We need to rise above that kind of trash, right? Umm. Not really. The ads tell you the benefit right up front. Better tacky that works than coy that doesn’t.

“You can’t mean online advertising no better than outdoor?” we in digital media wail. I first heart the comparison between online and outdoor in the mid 90s. CPMs for online, the argument ran, will stay comparable to outdoor because that’s what banner ads are like– billboards. We object. We rail. And yet, people click by web pages like cars exiting the Lincoln Tunnel.

We disdain the dancing cowboys and jeopardize our own futures.

Take Symantec. I hit a Symantec interstitial every day on the New York Times site. These ads expect me to stop, actually read, and engage with them. Oh, and there is an animation, that has to load and then do its thing. Are you kidding? When I’m trying to get to my article? You want me to stop and notice—better give me a dancing cowboy.
 

  Symantec Ad on New York Times
The current level of online advertising puts publishers at risk. Headlines are screaming the decline of print media. What will happen to the publishing business model if more and more content shifts online but advertising CPMs don’t shift as well? We have to leave our egos behind and come up with ad units that work. Furthermore, we need to partner with advertisers and resist running ads that we know won’t work.

CIQ Headlines for February 5, 2007

CIQ Headlines

Land of Gutenberg Questions Print–(International Herald Tribune) Vanity Fair is about to launch a German issue. Says the writer, “Condé Nast’s introduction, set for Thursday, of a weekly version of the storied American monthly comes at a time when the idea of publishing on paper sounds increasingly like an anachronism.” 

World’s Oldest Paper Goes Digital –(Editor & Publisher) The world’s oldest newspaper in continuous publication is the Sweedish Post-och Inrikes Tidningar, founded in 1645. Now, the only available edition will be online. CIQ: There are so many negative comments in this article. “What a shame it is only online!” How about, “Isn’t it wonderful there IS an online or the paper would disappear entirely.”

Turner Broadcasting Fined $2 Million –(WSJ) For the buzz-campaign gone awry in Boston. People who saw the small off-color electronic signs of cartoon characters on bridges, tunnels, and subway stations called the police. CIQ: It’s very hard to understand why this didn’t happen in the other cities where the signs were also posted. Shows the unpredictability of viral/buzz marketing.

CIQ Headlines for February 2, 2007

CIQ Headlines

IVillage Hosts 2ndLife Fashion Show–(Media Post) Intended to boost the popularity of iVillage Monday, the virtual fashion show corresponds with the opening of Fashion Week in New York. CIQ: A wonderful idea, but with only 400 simultaneous avatars possible, one has to wonder about the bang-for-the-buck.

Porn Leads the Way in Digital Content Ideas and Format— (Wired) Online metrics almost always filter out online gambling and porn from the eCommerce numbers. Otherwise, our charts would be in the stratusphere. It’s no surprise that these two industries have led many online innovations. Wired columnist Regina Lynn notes that as people battle about DVD formats, the future of porn is in on-demand video and real-time simulated interaction. CIQ: Hollywood take notice and ask, how does this apply to your creative product.

EA Raises Support for Wii–(Financial Times) The get-off-the-couch video game is now outselling PS3, prompting Electronic Arts to announce increased support for the Wii. CIQ: One can imagine content developed for the platform that’s not just bowling. Say, jumprope with Shrek.

CIQ Headlines for February 1, 2007

CIQ Headlines

Ikea Employs User-Generated Video in New Campaign— (Media Post) Ikea is offering $5000 to the user who submits the best video on making a bed. CIQ: Great marketing idea! But they still have one of the lousiest ecommerce sites around.

Times Company Bleeds Red Ink–(NYT) The New York Times company said it was writing down the value of its two New England newspapers by $815 million due to sluggish sales. Executives say revenue from its online properties is expected to grow by 30% this year. But in 2007 online revenues represented only 8% of the total. CIQ: Will print be able to (a) make the transition to online fast enough? (b) survive as technology wrings the bloat out of the print industry?

 AOL Revenue Up 49%–(New York Post) Refocusing the company’s strategy to the ad-sponsored content model is producing results that commentators call “stunning.” CIQ: As with Apple, it’s a fun exercise to count the number of times the media has announced the death of AOL.