I'm not sure I agree with the staff writers of Brand Week. In their May 28thissue, they question the "viability" of branded entertainment in the light of challenges Anheuser-Busch is facing with its Bud.tv.
Or as BusinessWeek's Helen Walters wrote generally about brand entertainment in her piece, "A New Breed of Branded Entertainment:"
"The biggest conundrum, of course, is whether consumers really do love brands as much as those working for brands and their agencies do. And even though transparency has been a buzzword in marketing for a while, will viewers really choose to navigate to a site with such blatant consumerism at its core?"
Bud.tv was announced with great fanfare in publications like the NY Times and iMedia Connection. Despite reports of an approximately $30 million budget for Bud.tv, A-B's branded entertainment network has not lived up to the expectations. The issue is Bud.tv, not branded entertainment in general.
Here's where I think A-B went wrong. It struck me as a touch anachronistic, that A-B was trying to build a destination. The media coverage focused on the network, not the programming. The industry talk was bud.tv, but how many could tick off a memorable show - of course the current swear jar clip is pretty damn funny.
This point was driven home in an interview with CBS President and CEO Les Moonves at the recent D Conference. When Walt Mossberg asked, What's the CBS brand? Moonves said, "The network's shows are its brands, the networks are not. Our business is about putting the best shows we can on our network."
The D conference also demonstrated how strong the bond between technology and entertainment has become. Content providers are increasingly becoming more Web 2.0 centric to reach the coveted 18-34 year old demographic. And marketers are following as traditional forms of advertising are proving less effective as well.
In short, A-B was right to use the Internet; they were wrong in how they used it.
As Steven Johnson writes in his book, Interface Culture, new technology is transforming the way we create and communicate. Back in the 1950's making the shift from radio to television meant adding pictures to existing formats. That was easy. Web 2.0 requires new rules of engagement.
A few have offered ways to save Bud.tv including Kevin Dugan in his excellent piece.
One of Bud.tv's major challenges was its restrictive registration process to weed out consumers under 21 - the very consumers they try to reach with their Super Bowl advertising. Another problem, the content could not be found on other sites.
A-B may have been better served and spent less money by offering up its content snippets on YouTube or by creating syndicated programs delivered on blip.tv. Others are creating original content made for the web in a serial format, known as webisodes. In these ways, A-B would have less control over the content's distribution, but they may reach more viewers.
Ultimately, as a user, I have to already know about and seek out Bud.tv, I can't just stumble upon, which is one the best parts of the web. The content may be funny, but it is difficult to share. Take the recent Ray Ban video. Like the sunglasses in the clip, the video is getting tossed around virally on the Net.
Whether Bud.tv survives is less important than the ground it is trying to break. As Andrew Wallenstein wrote back in March in Adweek, "Bud.tv has attracted attention for portending a paradigm shift for online media, allowing advertisers to pitch directly to consumers with their own programming."
And so, I get back to the point of branded content on the web. Companies like A-B are going to have to rethink their appoach if they want to be successful. Using the Internet for entertainment is still in its infancy. Brand marketers who are willing to take chances will be the first to reap the benefits. It is no longer enough to just get product placements. The ads themselves must be the entertainment.
Web 2.0 is wide open. There are no restrictions on content. Short form, long form, mobile devices or desk tops -- they all apply. Even users themselves can create content. The only limits will be the marketer's creativity.
Let me get back to you.
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