Hands on with Taglists for iPhone and iPad
I found a review online about an app that lets you tag content from different sources with a hashtag, which then allows users (any user) to view that tagged content as a live stream.
What piqued my interest was the notion that it would be possible for PBS, as a content provider, to tag our video, photo, news content with certain category tags. Then anybody could stream that curated content to their device. Or, if they have an AppleTV, to their big screen television. AKA: A new TV channel is born based around a subject!
For example:
- Washington Week, Newshour, & Frontline each individually tag their content with #PBSElection2012. Anybody who wanted to see PBS’s election coverage then plays that stream and they get all that content personally curated into one stream and pushed to their device.
- Masterpiece tags all their different branded shows with #PBSMasterpieceClassic, #PBSMasterpieceContemporary, #PBSMasterpieceMystery and a user gets each one of those genres streamed to them.
- All our news partners each tag their content about a certain subject, #PBSSOPA. They could tag their news articles, their photos, and video. Then all that content doesn’t have to be searched for in many locations anymore. A person just types in the hashtag and all that content becomes a playlist on their device. The same hashtag could be used on-air and on twitter to create a total experience around one topic.
The beautiful thing is that users, if we wanted, could add that same hashtag to their own content and it would show up in the stream. That means a local station could run a story (AKA: #WETAHurricaneAlberto) and they could push stories about the hurricane with that tag. But then local users could add their own photos & videos with the same tag to the stream creating a robust local news experience that grows all on it’s own.
This would blow search out of the water. You might never have to search for a main subject again from a content provider. Instead of a search box, the main page might just have curated hashtag links. Clicking on a link provides a stream of content about a specific subject from multiple and varied sources - photos, news stories, video, etc.
No more broken searches or pushing users to other sites for different content. It just all reveals itself in one neat coherent stream.
Source: imore.com
Is it OK to steal “Downton Abbey”?
The idea that it’s OK to steal episodes because PBS is “free anyway” is something that has me concerned. It’s NOT free! I could go on a long bender about where our money comes from but I won’t. I would have thought that the message of viewer supported public television with our pledge drives and 30 year message of “Viewers Like You. Thank You” would be well known by now, but I guess the idea might be new to this generation.
The much-loved (by some) Coca-Cola polar bears make their long-awaited (by some) return to high-profile soda-guzzling not only in 30-second Game Day spots, but also in the social sphere. During the game, you can go to CokePolarBear.com, which will be hosted within Facebook when it goes live, and watch the bears watch the game. The polar bears won’t just be sitting still either, they’ll be reacting to the action on the field.
via FastCo.
Source: youtube.com
Interesting comparisons b/n the White House and the Tea Party’s online presence. I’d say design and branding DO make a difference.
PBS Announces Season 2 of Downton Abbey in HD as iTunes Pass for $19.99
Downton Abbey resumes the story of aristocrats and servants in the tumultuous World War I era. The miniseries is written by Julian Fellowes and stars Dame Maggie Smith, Elizabeth McGovern, Hugh Bonneville, and a drawing room full of new actors, portraying the loves, feuds, and sacrifices of a glittering culture thrown into crisis.
Many of my colleagues in Public Media worry that selling content on iTunes will keep people from watching local PBS stations.
I believe that we need to share our content in the way people want to watch it. In the long run, our problem will not be how to keep people watching broadcast television. Rather, our challenge will be making our brand and content relevant in the minds of the American people.
And…people who will pay $19.99 for Downton Abbey on iTunes, weren’t going to watch it on their local station anyway.
I agree with Shane’s insights in regards to the fact that we should provide content to the viewers where the viewer wants it. And his insights on our brand across those new platforms is spot on; albeit one that we’re still struggling with even in broadcast.
My issue is; how do we measure success on these new forms of distribution? In broadcast we have Neilson ratings, which have long been a questionable form of measurement, but nonetheless they are the standard. I don’t think sales can be our new form of success because deals we have in place with the show producers, iTunes, other networks, etc prevent us from making any type of sizable profit. Perhaps download count? Hmmm…
So, I ask the question, in this new world of online distribution where you can watch what you want, how you want it - How do we measure success?
Source: shaneguiter
Introducing the new Google bar (by Google)
Two weeks later and still no Google bar.
Source: youtube.com
AJ Wholesale Return Policy on Amazon Sucks
I don’t think I’ll be purchasing anything from AJ Wholesale ever again on Amazon. Returns: For any returns, damaged, lost or refused shipments, call or email us asap.Customer must receive authorization from AJ Wholesale in order to return a product. Returns can only be done within 30 days of purchase.
The product must be BRAND NEW, unopened and in its original condition. Returns on electronic and appliance items are subject to a 25% restocking fee. All other items are subject to a 20% restocking fee. We will not accept a return of any product that is missing any manufacturer supplied accessories or if there is obvious damage or visible wear and tear to the unit.
Orders that are refused or sent back to us due to an incorrect or insufficient address are subject to restocking fee and the original cost of shipping is not refundable
Customer must ship the product back to AJ wholesale at his or her own expense.
On all returns, shipping NOT refundable.
Cutting The Chord Analysis
With the announcement of the Apple TV and then the new Hulu Plus this fall, I (like many others) had grand visions of what is commonly called “cutting the chord”. Meaning, that I wanted to get out of my expensive cable contract and watch all my TV shows using only online media. After all, Apple was now touting HD $.99 rentals and Hulu Plus had just arrived with an $8/month price tag. Those two outlets, plus my current subscription with Netflix and I was sure I could now cut that expensive cable chord. Boy was I wrong.
**Disclosure: For what it’s worth, I work in the TV industry and have worked at major cable networks.
The Parameters
I had a few requirements/parameters when I did my research. First, all the shows had to be in HD. I wasn’t going to sacrifice quality. And since I just bought a brand new 55” 3D TV, I wanted everything to be the best quality it could be - within reason. Secondly, I would constrain the timeframe to 4 months (September thru December). That way, I could match my cable bill squarely up against the new online option.
The Current Setup
The first thing I needed to determine was how much my current setup was costing me. After a few phone calls to the cable company I got these figures:
Current Setup: HD, DVR Cable + Internet
Total Bill: ($168/mo.): $672
Then, I wanted this comparison to be apples to apples so the figure had to represent JUST the cable package and NOT cable plus internet.
Internet: ($44.95 + $5.00 with Cable Package/mo.): $200
Adj Cost (Cable Only): $472
This was the number I had to beat with the online option - $472. If the online option was cheaper than this, then it would be better for me to cut the chord.
The List
Next, I set out to create a list of all the different shows I watched on a regular basis and that I wanted to continue watching for the remainder of the season. The complete season of these shows are included in the cable’s $472 figure so I needed to find everyone of these online somewhere. Here’s the list…don’t judge me!
- Glee
- Human Target
- Family Guy
- Modern Family
- Cougar Town
- Community
- The League
- How I met your Mother
- Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia
- Hawaii Five O
- The Walking Dead
- CSI
- The Office
- The Event
- The Mentalist
I went to iTunes first, trying to find the shows under the HD rental section. But what I found out was that most of the shows I wanted to watch weren’t available to rent - only purchase, which dramatically increased the cost.
Next, I went through Hulu Plus and cross referenced my findings with the iTunes list - crossing off the ones in iTunes that I found under Hulu Plus. The problem though with Hulu was that some of the shows weren’t licensed to Hulu and the site just redirected you to the networks main site.
Pricing
I started pricing out the different shows and how much they’d cost. Here’s how it broke down:
iTunes ($.99 HD Rentals)
- Glee: x10, $10
- Human Target: x4, $4
- Family Guy: x6, $6
- Modern Family: x10, $10
- Cougar Town: x10, $10
Sub Total: $4
** Yep, that’s right. I could only find HD rentals for 5 of the 15 shows. After cross referencing those 5 against what was available on Hulu, I was only going to be renting one show. Disappointing.
——————————————————
iTunes (HD Purchase)
- Community: $55 Season
- The League: $32 Season
- How I met your Mother: $53 Season
- Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia: $28 Season
- Hawaii Five O: $56 Season
- The Walking Dead: $16 Season
- CSI: $58 Season
- The Office: $60 Season
- The Event: $50 Season
Sub Total: $298
** This was really disappointing. The seasons of the shows cost quite a bit. And it seams there is no standardized pricing. Each shows full season was a different price. After cross referencing those 9 against what was available on Hulu, I was going to have to purchase 7 full seasons of shows.
——————————————————
Hulu Plus - $8/month
- Family Guy
- Cougar Town
- The Event
- Glee
- Modern Family
- The Office
** Sadly, I couldn’t find ‘The Mentalist’ as of this posting, so I would have to lose that one. And you can’t access live sports or news yet online so no more Auburn football. That’s a big deal breaker for some people. I just figured I’d go to the local sports bar. The Online Totals The final step was to add everything up:
Online Only Setup: Internet w/iTunes & Hulu Plus
Internet Only: ($60/mo.): $240
Hulu Plus: ($8/mo.): $32
iTunes: ($4+$298): $302
Total Cost: $574
**NOTE: Cable companies give you a break when you package your internet with your cable subscription. If you decide to go Internet only, they’re going to charge you more. And if more and more people start to cut their cable subscriptions, then the cable companies with have no choice but to raise rates on their internet packages - perhaps even go to a tiered pricing system.
The Results
This was very disappointing. The cable option was $472 and the online option was $574. Cutting the chord was way more expensive that I had previously thought. These results might not be perfect but they show that, despite all the marketing and news reports about customer subscription rates dropping, this technology just isn’t up to par with my old fashioned cable subscription - yet!
My online world is starting to take on a life of it’s own.
Where (On the Internet) To Watch Every Comedy This Season
Great list of all the sites (IE: Hulu, ABC, HBO GO) where you can watch content online.
