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Michael Kosowicz's Blog

Hulu Model Saves Shows and Networks

Here is the headline: "WB brand, born as a broadcast network in 1995 and closed in 2006, will return as an online video Web site, combining short original series with classic shows, the Warner Brothers Television Group announced Monday." {http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/29/business/media/29warner.html?ref=business}

If you have been following me on Twitter (twitter.com/gimlato) you know I have been raving about Hulu.com for a months now. In fact, I do not have a cable bill only a internet connection bill. As a time poor professional Hulu.com is the perfect fix for my entertainment needs. Now the true power of Hulu is coming to the surface.

If Hulu.com was around a few years ago shows like Arrested Development, Studio 60 and many others would have had a life outside broadcast TV. While the WB will be a stand alone website network, it is only a matter of time before more network shows live on sites like Hulu.com. Sometimes it is not about new technology, it is about taking what traditionally works and plugging it into new media outlets. Hulu.com is a great example of this. By webcasting shows using the same advertising models as TV you can generate revenue for content that was once dusty on a shelf. I look forward to more New Traditional Media Strategies. If Content is King, then new media outlets are the castles.

Now back to the last episode of "Hill Street Blues". Thank you Hulu.

Time Out New York Gets Out in New York

Really interesting what Time Out New York has been doing lately. In each issue there are real-world ways to meet and hang out with the editors, writers and staff of the magazine. It take a magazine that was starting to feel somewhat corporate, back to the streets where it all started. Examples: One issue invited you to a speed date with the single members of the magazine, one issue invited you to meet up at the Vespa with the bar editor for a bar crawl a few Thursday nights ago. It is really refreshing for a property that big to realize they may be loosing touch.

Big Brands Just Don't Get It

My mother's birthday is today and I went online to send her an e-card (she says they are just as nice and require no carbon footprint). So I wandered over to Hallmark.com, then AmericanGreeting.com and then Bluemountain.com. I left all three sites in a fury! All three sites (looks like BM was bought by Hallmark) now require you to actually put in a credit card number to send a "free" eCard! Business is business, I get it. But way to miss an opportunity to help your customer out. I had to fill out two pages of personal information (including my phone number!), then only at the end they tell me I have to pay. I am so disappointed. Of course I found another site of equal quality and my mom is now enjoying a wonderful birthday greeting from me. I hope these Big Brand managers read the story of Starbucks or Google. You don't kick someone out of the chair when they are done their coffee and you don't charge the consumer for a brand experience.

Show within a Show

The newest trend in broadcasting seems to be "a show within a show". I first noticed it on the CBS show Cane. In the show they announce a contest to find the next Duque girl. And as it turns out, you can actually enter the contents to be the face of a brand that does not even exist (www.luciaduquerum.com). Interesting. In the Showtime show Dexter, they plug a comic book series "The Dark Defender", you can actually watch the three episodes at the (Dark Defender Site). If it is brand stickiness they are looking for, they are doing it correctly. A great experiment with mixed media.

American Express Plum

Seems like everyone is getting into the privilege game. Plum is the new Black, for the masses. American Express just launched a new care called Plum. Rich in color the card is only being offered to the first 10,000 applicants. The card offers a 2% reward if your balance is paid early. Interesting strategy. Very interested to see if this ends up working for them. I am sure the "Avocado" card will not be far behind. http://www.plumcard.com/

Hip to be Square

I remember way back when the iPod first came out you couldn't help take notice of the white ear buds coming out of a persons jacket or bag, a sign of a cool early adopter. I even remember a newspaper article that warned that the white ear bud could increase you risk of being mugged. Now with the entry of the iPhone I find myself looking for the little white square (the mic for the phone) on the white ear buds to see if the person has an iPod or a iPhone. Won't be long before seeing an iPod will be as strange a seeing someone with a CD Walkman.

Apple Promotes Porn on TV Commercials

Apples recent "black screen testimonials" campaign has taken a strange turn. In the most recent commercial they feature a off broadway director talking about how he uses his iPhone to communicate with fans who see the show. Innocent enough, until you go to www.myfirsttime.com the name of his Broadway show. The ads that are fed to this really bad website have titles like "F**K an 18 year old tonight" and "Find a female F**k buddy". Beyond that, the stories belong in Penthouse. As a stand alone project, interesting art. But for Apple to be tied to a site that is beyond racy, is a very bold and stupid move. I have to believe someone checked this out...and gave it the green light. Now I do not really care either way, but my guess is that they are going to take a lot of heat for this.

New NYC Taxi Logo: An Eye Sore

One of the wonderful things about living in New York City is that we are allowed, some say required, to have an opinion on anything that effects our city living experience. So, while this may seem trivial to some outside NYC, I can not stop thinking and ranting about this in my mind. The TLC has unveiled a new logo design for taxis. It is probably the worst design imaginable. It is unreadable, looks sloppy and is not at all on trend with the design explosion going on in the city. It looks like someone found a "fun", "fat", font in Word and decided good was good enough.

God is in the details. I agree that the old crooked stencil font was due for an update, but to choose a design that is already dated is lazy and very un-NewYork. I guess we are stuck with logo for a long time to come. At least I know I can watch a little TV in the cab to take my mind off yet another poor decision by the NYC government.

Really Apple? Really?

So this is the best art direction Apple was able to put together to honor Al Gore. Not even sure why Apple is getting involved with this award. Stay focused Apple: computers, music, phones...not Al Gore.