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Monday, June 18, 2007

Sony introduces Minisodes on My Space

Have you watched a minisode yet? Frankly, I clicked through and watched the Honda commerical followed by a couple minutes of TJ Hooker... and then I clicked off. Great stunt, great promotion, great out of box thinking of using existing video in the new space, but it has no legs and will die a quick death. I tried today to go into My Space and search for Minisode, TJ Hooker, Sony, and other terms in their video box and couldn't find it. And it isn't a featured video either, so I say outa sight, outa mind.

My thinking is that most major entertainment companies are still guessing on how to make the internet work for them. Lots of guesses, few home runs. Re-editing old TV and finding a sponsor, hard to see the future of that. But I don't wan't to be a naysayer. Opportunity does abound, but it is more synergistic than the above stunt. Sneak peaks, deleted scenes, related gaming, interactive discussions, and other TV 2.0 elements will have much stronger legs. Ultimately, the entertainment value brings in the advertising partner, but it also must keep driving the viewer back to the core product/show/movie. New TV shows need to keep adding viewers, no one cares that much about old TV shows.

I recall a number of years ago watching an episode of Everybody Loves Raymond while on a airplane trip; having never watched before, I enjoyed the show and was encouraged to seek it out and watch new episodes on TV. That out of box taste turned me into a viewer. This type of tactic has most potential on the web. Unlike a standalone stunt with old TV shows, the concept should be applied to new shows to help find bring viewers to their TV show. So forget about TJ Hooker, try it with a show currently on the air.