On Friday we wrote about how NBC were partnering with Microsoft and others to use the Olympics coverage as a test-bed for researching new user habits in viewing content between online, television and mobile. The web experience at NBC is powered by Silverlight, also giving Microsoft its first large-scale opportunity to gain distribution for the new web platform. It seems that there are very high expectations from not only NBC and Microsoft, but also advertisers, as Mediaweek today report that the online ad inventory for the NBC Olympics coverage is almost sold out. NBC says that 85% of all available inventory has already been sold, an extraordinarily high amount. NBC did not disclose exact details or numbers, but did say that they have signed corporations such as Mcdonalds, Coca Cola, Johnson and Johnson, Hilton and Anheuser-Busch as video advertisers for the web broadcasts. Since the International Olympics Commitee sets strict standards on advertising during the games, overlays are not allowed so video ads will take the form of short and 30-second spots both before and after clips and shows. NBC paid $4.2 Billion for the exclusive rights (both television and web) to broadcast both the four summer and winter games between 2006 and 2012. NBC experienced disappointing ratings with both the Sydney and Athens Olympic games, and suffered losses due to unhappy advertisers. The issue with the games at the time was the time zone difference causing a huge drop in audience – as events were shown in early morning hours or in the middle of the night (in the case of Sydney). With the NBC and Microsoft web strategy, the audience can now be expanded to those watching at work, on the road or those who watch clips delayed – which will in theory result in an audience much larger than television-only (and in-turn more revenue). For NBC, web video and technologies like Silverlight are playing a big part in expanding their audiences and increasing revenue. Who would have though that the whole online video thing would ever be responsible for actually saving and helping a company like NBC? CrunchBase Information NBC Universal Microsoft Information provided by CrunchBase → Read More
The Beijing Olympics begin August 8, but just remember what happens to the guy in first place. via fusioned.tumblr.com → Read More
We’ve got a man on the ground in San Francisco and we’re getting some nice pictures of protesters and miscellaneous people at the ceremony there. Looks like there are a lot of sightseers and people are generally having a good time — not the bloody melee you’d expect at a civil rights protest in the Bay Area (or at a Tibetan Monastery – ouch!). We’ll keep you updated. If you’re there and checking this on your iPhone, keep us appraised of events. → Read More
If you’ve been wanting to climb mount everest, but were afraid to be without your Blackberry for five days, China’s got your back. The great red burgeoning superpower’s largest cellphone provider has just installed cell towers to cover the mountain, all the way to the summit. Ostensibly this is to ensure coverage for the 2008 Olympic’s torch relay, as the torch’s path takes it up the mountain. While we understand the significance of the event — having the torch at the roof of the world sounds awesome — don’t you think China’s got some other things it should focus on first? Like ending censorship, atoning for human rights abuses, making sure our Optimus Prime toys don’t have dangerous levels of lead — that kind of thing? But what do I know? This isn’t a political blog. No, we’re about gadgets, so I grudgingly must say to China: awesome job, dudes. And that “Can you hear me now?” guy can suck it. China Mobile sets up on Everest [Wired] → Read More
With the Olympics coming to Beijing, China next year, electronics manufacturers know it’s time to step up to the plate and to offer something ridiculous and expensive to commemorate the event. Samsung today announced a special version of the P318 Anycall phone in a stunning 18-karat gold paint job.Combined with the black finish, it looks like an alright phone, especially next to the D&G RAZR from Motorola. One thing is for certain though. China will be getting the phone and it’ll be available in select markets only. With no price or launch date set, who knows how Samsung is going to play this out. They could charge $500, they could charge $5000. We’ll wait and see what happens. Gold-Plated Phone Planned for Olympics [PhysOrg] → Read More
There’s something rotten in the state of LG. It seems the Korean manufacturer is having some trouble offloading its plasma TVs, with sales last February down some $35 million compared to the previous year. To be fair, it does appear to be a general trend in the TV industry, with LCDs being cheaper to produce at larger and larger sizes. (It used to be that LCDs larger than 42 inches were prohibitively expensive. Starting at that size, you usually went with plasma.) So LG will cut plasma production by 70,000 units per year from now on. Somewhat related is that, of the plasmas it will produce, LG will be making them smaller for the Chinese market. The sweet spot seems to be sets in the 30-inch range, something the company expects to take off in anticipation of next year’s Olympics in Beijing. LG Electronics De-Emphasizing Plasma TVs [PC Magazine] LG to scale down TV panel size for China [Reuters] → Read More
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