I'm in the US at the moment and inbetween various meetings and bouts of jetlag I have been watching a bit of CNN. A news feature this morning both fascinated me and simultaneously proved how iconic the video sharing site has become. The feature was all about a college in California that has just started a course for students on the study of YouTube ...
The course is apparently designed to examine culture using YouTube as a kind of social microscope. The course tutor has lofty hopes for the course. She claims it will expose and explore issues about the site, such as the role of "corporate-sponsored democratic media expression." Whatever that means.
Still, when you consider some of the courses available at some other US colleges (eg. 'Philosophy and The Simpsons' or even 'Star Trek and Religion' - hey I kid you not) then maybe YouTube 101 doesn't sound that strange ? OK, actually it still does. Only in America right ?
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Got an email from Brand Republic yesterday talking about their first online Careers Fair this week so they have asked us bloggers to relate any amusing anecdotes (cock ups was the expression used actually - shame on you Brand Republic) about being a fresh faced graduate in adland. Frankly I've got loads. Problem is I can't write about most of them for fear of retribution although I reckon I can just about sneak this 'cock up' under the wire (mixing my metaphors actually sounds quite painful on this occasion doesn't it ?).
I started in the media department of J Walter Thompson in Manchester in June '86 eager to make a good impression. It didn't last long. Within weeks I'd found out about the lunchtime lure of the White Lion, went to my first media bash (courtesy of STV, it was all fireworks and free lager as I recall) and had got quite friendly with one of the girls from production charging.
All was well with the world. Until that day when the sales director of a fledgling satellite & cable TV sales agency came in to ply his wares to us. I can't remember his name or the name of the sales company (there have been a few more free beer parties since then) but I could never forget what happened.
I was in the Boardroom on the 3rd floor with a load of my colleagues at the time (Pauline Hackett, Jill Thomas, Robin Bell, Clare Downing, Pete Mitchell to name but a few). Anyway, the presentation was shite. A load of channels we had never heard of and most of which I have never heard of since.
But he had saved details of the best channel until last. It was called 'Red Hot Dutch'. If you haven't heard of it before then I'm sure you can work out what type of programming it featured.
Needless to say our ears pricked up when he started his opening sales gambit for RHD. For some strange reason he seemed a trifle coy and started muttering about things like reach, impact and penetration to the barely stifled sniggers of me and my partner-in-crime Pete.
But worse was to come ... as he got more embarrassed, he got increasingly more flustered to the extent that he decided prematurely to cut to the Audio Visual he had prepared on Betamax (it was the 80's after all). Now brimming with eager anticipation, Pete and I were on the edge of our seats waiting (praying) for him to push Play when the guy uttered the immortal line "well enough of all the sales patter, here is a video of example programming from the channel. Actually there's some great little snatches on this tape".
Now, in hindsight, I reckon he might have chosen his words slightly more carefully. 'Excerpts' could have been a slightly better alternative perhaps ? Alas, it was too late. Pete and I lost it. Basically we simply self combusted and were flailing all over the Boardroom table. It was so bad we had to be escorted out the room. Even that didn't work though. Despite the fact that the room was sound proofed we could still be heard outside laughing for another 20 minutes after the incident.
The downside ? Got a written warning. Oh and I never got to see the tape. Actually I got another written warning a few months later for turning up at noon the day after a Christmas MPA bash (but that's another story). Well, at least Pauline never found out that it was me who blew up the engine in her white Escort RS Turbo posing on Deansgate in my Wayfarers (like I said, it was the 80's) or else I wouldn't be here to tell the tale now would I ?
ps. sorry Pauline
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The mp3 format is ten years old today. The Fraunhofer Institute invented the aural phenomenon a decade ago and they devised the audio compression codec that remains the most user friendly of online music formats. So what else have those clever German boffins got up their sleeves ?
Amongst other things, they have developed a video projector the size of a sugar cube. The miniature device could be used to project images from mobile phones, PDAs or laptops, according to the Institute.
Think thats cool ? Try this then. They have developed 2 new systems which could render both the mouse and the keyboard obsolete within the next 5 years. Both are screen based technologies which can detect either finger movements or the tracking of the eye.
Linked into the same technology, they are developing a face recognition system for home computers / laptops which will enable advertisers to deliver personalised ads to you as you browse the internet.
And finally, Dolby 5.1 could also be on it's way out as they are currently developing a new 3D sound system which will be used in conjunction with HD digital projections at cinemas.
All smart stuff of course although I suspect none of these ideas, as great as they are, will have quite the impact that the MP3 did. Happy birthday fella (although I suspect with the advent of the mp4 etc. the mp3 might not make it to it's 18th birthday).
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Pitch fees. A good thing right ? No more beauty parades of agencies, some recompense for all the effort that is put into a pitch presentation etc. Well certainly some of the advertising bodies in Asia seem to think so with countries like Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia leading the way by setting up a new model for pitching. But not everyone seems thrilled at the prospect ...
Lets take Indonesia as an example. It was reported in Media Asia (sister site to Brand Republic) that the Indonesian Advertising Agencies Association are proposing to their members that they get pitch fees mandated from 2008.
They have drawn up a blueprint which recommends (amongst other things) that advertisers can only invite up to a maximum of 5 agencies to pitch for a piece of business and furthermore all agencies will be paid a minimum of 5 million rupiah (about 300 quid) for their participation.
In fairness, it's not a huge sum of money (probably just enough to pay for the photocopier paper). Still, it's the principle that counts and I guess something is better than nothing.
The reaction to the proposal in Indonesia has been rather 'mixed' shall we say. Most advertisers, it is reported, are not exactly keen on the idea although a few clients (such as Unilever and P&G) welcomed the move.
What is possibly more surprising was the lukewarm reaction the proposal has had from agencies themselves. They seem to regard the initiative as well intentioned but ultimately not practicable. Why ? Well, one anonymous agency source summed it up as follows:
"It's hard to tell clients what to do... if you ask them to pay pitch fees there are a hundred other agencies willing to do the job without a fee"
And there lies the problem. Unless everyone agrees to participate the model is flawed. And if the markets out here are anything like the UK then there will always be an agency who are prepared to sacrifice a code of conduct in order to secure an account.
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And the beat goes on. Apparently. That's the line Steve Jobs and his pals at Apple used to announce the latest incarnation of the iPod last night.
The daddy of MP3 players has changed and the beat of the new iPod is very different to the old one it seems. For instance, gone is the revolutionary scrollwheel concept, replaced by a 'touch sensitive' screen (akin to the iPhone). But that's not the only thing that's changed ...
No longer is the iPod available in white. Heresy. At least initially the 6th generation iPod has ditched the iconic white plastic casing in favour of aluminium and black (how long before we witness a 'classic' version being launched in white, naturally as a more expensive limited edition retro model ?). God I'm cynical.
Actually the new iPod has much more in common with the iPhone than the previous model of the iPod. Makes sense I suppose but I'll miss that scrollwheel. In fact the buzz phrase for the new model is the iPod Touch, courtesy of it's new large (3.5") touch sensitive screen.
The new version will also play movies and TV programmes as standard. Nothing new there I hear you cry as you could already play these files on some of the old versions of the iPod. Well that's true but you haven't been able to download them via integrated wifi before have you ? Yes you can access the internet, visit iTunes, download a song or movie and never need to sync it with your computer. Cool hey ? What's more, due to a deal carved out with Starbucks, you will be able to download any tracks you hear whilst sipping your tall decaf skinny lattes.
The marketing opportunities are clear to see. Internet access. Nuff said. No wonder Steve Jobs described the new iPod as one of the "7 wonders of the world". Well I reckon that's pushing it a bit and let's put it this way, when it launches in time for Xmas I can honestly say I dont need one. But, boy oh boy, do I want one.
What are going to call the mobile phone now ? The once humble moby now has the capability to be (amongst other things) a digital camera, a computer, an MP3 player, a TV and even (as reported in todays New Straits Times) an electronic wallet. 20 million osaifu-keitai (or 'wallet phones' to you and I) are already being used in Japan to pay for anything from a plate of sashimi to a ride on the bullet train. New and improved Near-Field Communication technology (as it's apparently called) has arrived in Singapore ...
The two big telcos, Singtel and Starhub, have both released statements announcing the arrival of the new 'tap and pay' service. Initially the service will be limited to small ticket items such as bus rides, convenience items and drinks at bars (not exactly what I'd refer to as a small ticket item when I'm out on the lash but I think I get the picture).
Two payment platforms are being tested. One is a pay as you go Top-Up Card system and the other is a revolutionary system which connects to your bank account via a mobile network.
I'll give it a year before you can get one at the Carphone Warehouse.
Four days in South Korea last week opened my eyes to the endless possibilities that both mobile and broadband have to offer markets like the UK... it's just waiting to be exploited to the full by agencies and marketers when it hits consumers in your neck of the woods in a few years time. Take mobile TV for instance...
Terrestrial free-to-air mobile TV is already widely available in South Korea thanks to the likes of providers such as SK Telecom. The handset looks pretty much like any other (although local brands such as Samsung and LG proliferate). The only difference is a slightly bigger extendable aerial and the capacity to turn the viewing screen sideways.
The quality is quite extraordinary. Much better resolution than I anticipated. I thought it was going to be like one of those cheap analogue portable TV's you can buy in the UK which frankly always have a crap picture and patchy sound. Not so with the (up to) 4G digital mobile TV. The pictures are very clear and the sound was superb. I watched about 10 minutes of the news on local channel SBS and the picture / sound never faded once.
In addition to free-to-air programming, there is also a subscription based model for satellite channels (such as ESPN). There are already over 1 million subscribers to this paid-for service in South Korea and it's growing rapidly.
For advertisers, you can either pay an additional premium to get your ad out to the mobile audience on top of the traditional TV option or alternatively you can pay exclusively for it (which opens up a realm of possibilities for advertisers who previously couldn't afford conventional TV campaigns).
The advances in terms of broadband are also pretty spectacular. The native IM service in South Korea is called NateOn. It was launched only about 2 years ago but it is already bigger in South Korea than MSN Messenger and is used by an incredible 91% of all people aged between 20 and 29. So how has it managed to be so successful ? Mainly because it's become a hybrid of all the best bits of IM, social networks and mobile (once again its owned by SK).
Pretty revolutionary stuff, coming your way very soon (although secretly I still think that 'squirt and dry' Panasonic electronic toilet in my hotel room was by far the most amazing thing I saw).
Steve Blakeman
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Member since: 03 Jun 2008
Last login: 27 Oct 2008
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