Monday, April 09, 2007
Advertising Could Push Web Video to TV
The divide between web video watching and advertising dollars could be crossed once YouTube content starts showing up on TiVos and AppleTVs.I have been calling for media box makers (including DVRs, game consoles, and media servers) to enable their boxes to see web video content for nearly a year, and slowly but surely it is happening.
Mac enthusiasts are adding many features by hacking the AppleTV, and software company Twenty08 has just released a beta AppleTV RSS reader. While the software today allows you to subscribe to and view RSS text feeds, the company says video RSS is on the way. AppleTV so far is limited to purchased iTunes content, but that's about .01 percent of the video content that is available on the web.
TiVo has had the ability to view web video from a few select partners such as the New York Times and Rocketboom, but again the greater web has been ignored. Competition from IPTV services is also putting pressure on box makers to open their doors to web video.
Software hacks won't include the advertising piece, so it's up to the box makers to figure out how to monetize the content. Video aggregators also need to get involved because once the ads are integrated with content, copyright holders will want to get paid. This requires building relationships, which could be the last piece of the puzzle. Wouldn't NBC want its programs that are available on demand online to be viewed on TV with ads?
Someone will get this right, and I say it will happen no later than January 2008's CES.
Posted By John Gartner at 08:44 AM
Permanent Link: Advertising Could Push Web Video to TV
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