YouTube is the New Napster-- by Nate Winter

YouTube, Google's golden egg of online video, has found itself in the copyright-infringed ire of media giant Viacom. Speculation as to YouTube's ability to avoid copyright tangles came from every direction when Google purchased the start up for $1.65 billion last fall. The suit filed by Viacom, owner of Paramount Pictures, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and other high profile media properties, claims that YouTube distributed Viacom's copyrighted content (pretty much just Daily Show and Colbert Report clips) without permission (which it undoubtedly did).

Amidst the inevitable hubbub about the internet's ability to defeat big business propriety and make information free or the future of online video as we know it, it occurred to me that we've seen this situation before. Does the word "Napster" ring a bell?

What Napster was for online music in the late '90s, YouTube is for video now. There are some situational differences, but we'll deal with those in a moment.

The key commonality is the nature of Napster and YouTube as empty frameworks dependent on users to provide content. A metaphor I'm fond of from the days of Napster's legal troubles is that of a bong. It's perfectly legal to build and own a bong (which you call a "water pipe" to stay out of trouble). There are uses of a bong that are legal, such as smoking loose tobacco. But, come on, we all know what people really use bongs for. The same goes for Napster and YouTube. Their frameworks can be used to share non-copyrighted, user-generated content, which is totally legal, but it's only a matter of time before people begin to use these tools for evil.

So the questions posed by the Viacom suit are, "To what extent can YouTube be held accountable for the actions of its users?" and "How closely does YouTube have to watch the content that users add to weed out copyrighted material?" Using Napster as a precedent, the answers are "Very accountable" and "Extremely closely," respectively.

There are key differences, however, between Napster's legal troubles of yore and YouTube's hot seat position today. Money is a big one. Metallica went after Napster to set a precedent: copyright holders should have control of their copyrighted material, especially when it is being stolen. Shawn Fanning, while a minor celebrity for Napster's popularity, was far from a blank check waiting to be written.

With YouTube, precedence be damned! Viacom is out for blood-- the almighty dollar. YouTube's rise to online video domination was founded on distributing copyrighted material (SNL's "Lazy Sunday" anyone?), but its penniless co-creators weren't high on anyone's list of legal targets. But when Google's deep pockets got a hold of YouTube for the highly-publicized sum of $1.65 billion, legal radar went berserk and media owners started seeing dollar signs.

The second difference is that of owning versus access on demand. Napster users traded files and maintained complete control of the .mp3s they downloaded, whereas YouTubers have access any time, but can't remove a clip from the YouTube framework. Will this distinction make a difference for Viacom vs. YouTube?

I think it should mean a far lighter penalty for YouTube. YouTube isn't giving ownership of copyrighted material to people, just showing it to them for free. YouTube is like a radio station that doesn't pay its ASCAP dues. [ASCAP is The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Distributors, like radio stations, pay dues to ASCAP for the rights to play copyrighted music for a mass audience. ASCAP uses these dues to pay dividends to artists based on how often their songs are played.]

In AdAge.com's article from March 18, 2007 entitled, "At Stake in Viacom vs. Google Lawsuit: Future of Media" contains an interesting point about an alternative solution for Viacom.

"Jeff Jarvis, author of Buzzmachine.com, has been loudly critical of Viacom's anti-YouTube actions because, he said, 'Viacom is trying to position this as stealing, but the truth is it is [Viacom's] fans recommending its content. Recommendation is the new marketing.'"

Jarvis is right. Instead of trying to take YouTube/Google for everything it's worth, why not try to make a deal with them? People obviously like the content they're posting and YouTube is the way they prefer to do it. Wouldn't Viacom be better off monetizing this popularity by getting a cost per view on YouTube than spending time and money fighting it? Or if Viacom offered more content or better quality content on its own websites, users wouldn't need to post clips on YouTube at all.

I predict that YouTube/Google will have to pay damages far less than $1 billion. They'll get a slap on the wrist, but be forced to police the kind of content that is posted to the site. YouTube isn't going anywhere. There are too many grassroots videos of animals being cute and guys getting hit in the balls out there for that. But YouTube's honeymoon is definitely over.

YouTube's golden ticket lies in finding a way to monetize its popularity so it can, in turn, give pay-per-view revenue to content producers for copyrighted material. This will be how YouTube justifies its existence as a legitimate online video source and a force to be reckoned with. Otherwise it should just change its name to HitInTheBallsVideos.com.

-- Nate Winter

Tagline Proposal for Real Estate Development-- by Nate Winter

[The following is a tag line proposal for a residential real estate development targeting home buyers 50 years and up in Chicago's North Shore suburbs. The client and development name have been changed in this version for reasons of confidentiality.]

In prior discussions on a tag line the client has expressed affinity for phrases such as “At Last,” and “Finally” and has said it would like a tag line that captures the same ideas.

The first step is to determine what qualities and connotations of these phrases are so profound for Development X’s 50+ years old, North Shore resident market. For this group, retirement and retirement planning are important and relevant topics. Of course, not all Development X buyers will be retired or on the verge of retirement, but it is crucial to recognize that this group thinks about retirement as the next phase in life and has begun planning for it.

There are 3 ideas that “At Last,” and “Finally” express, illustrating why they are pertinent to Development X’s target market.

Entitlement
Similar ideas include: “Earning” as in “You’ve earned it,” and “Deserving” as in “You deserve it.”

Having spent most of their lives working, raising and supporting a family, funding education, saving for the unexpected, and delaying gratification, they feel they’ve worked hard and are entitled to something great. They want to be rewarded for their hard work. Development X is that reward.

Relief
Similar ideas include: “Ahhhhh,” “Relaxation,” and “Comfort.”

Relief comes from the feeling that the stage of life characterized by major stresses from work and family is coming to an end. Their children are grown and they are financially stable. This market can now focus its attention inward. Quality of life has always been important to them, but as they look forward to retirement and extra leisure time, how they spend that time is increasingly meaningful. Relief and relaxation are the types of gratification they have delayed for career and family. And now Development X provides them.

Excitement
Similar ideas include: “Anticipation,” “Enthusiasm,” “Butterflies in one’s stomach,” and “Anxiousness.”

Excitement is rooted in the affirmation that the sacrifices and investments they’ve made are paying off as or better than expected. They will finally have the life they’ve dreamt about and they’re excited for that moment to arrive. The prospect of living in Development X excites them.

Proposed Development X Tagline:

Your Moment Has Arrived

This phrase captures the essences of entitlement, relief, and excitement just as effectively as “At Last,” or “Finally” while offering additional meanings and providing vital versatility for usage in a variety of marketing materials.

The word “moment” is powerful. In this case it connotes an important and memorable, yet fleeting, point in time. It suggests a recognizable event, a memory to last a lifetime, but one that is brief and not to be missed. This is how buying a Development X home should be viewed: as the unforgettable, exciting, chance of a lifetime.

“Arrived” and the concept of “arrival” are also poignant. “Arrival” connotes a coming of age, a rite of passage, and a realization of potential. Development X buyers are on the verge of arrival. That is, they are very close to beginning the next phase of their lives, and having it as they dreamed it would be. Beginning this phase as residents of Development X is part of that dream.

“Arrival” is a key word that can be worked into marketing copy for powerful effect. Examples include:
The North Shore’s Development X Arrives Fall 2008. When Will You?
When Is Your Arrival?
Discuss Your Arrival With A Member Of Our Sales Team Today.

Page headlines in the Development X website can effectively leverage the tag line and it’s derivatives in a variety of ways.
Home Page: Development X Has Arrived.
About Page: Your Ideal Community Has Arrived.
Neighborhood Amenities Page: Your Peace Of Mind Has Arrived.
Product Features Page: Your Luxury Has Arrived.
Floor Plan Page: Your Dream Home Has Arrived.
Location Page: Your Level Of Convenience Has Arrived.
Developer Page: Your Development Team Has Arrived.
Contact Page: Your Time Has Arrived.

Advertising headlines can function similarly to the website headlines. An ad promoting the location with shopping and dining options might read: Your Taste Has Arrived. An ad appealing to investment buyers might use the headline: Your Opportunity Has Arrived. Ads touting landscaping and snow removal services might read: Your Care-Free Lifestyle Has Arrived.

In short, the tagline “Your Moment Has Arrived” for Development X invokes the correct meanings that will appeal to the target market and does so in a manner that is aesthetically pleasing and versatile.

-- Nate Winter

Branded Experience Is Not Enough-- by Nate Winter

In the market of interactive design work, "experience" terminology like "branded experience," and "digital experience" are a dime a dozen. It"s not to say these terms hold no value, in fact their value is substantial, but the oversaturation of these terms as buzz words has distorted the view of the bigger picture. Experience is great. It gets us through each day and on to bigger and better opportunities. On some level, life is simply a series of experiences. But it vastly oversimplifies what it means to live. This understanding is insufficient. Incomplete.

This is where interactive design agencies fail.

The "experience" in "branded experience" needs to be taken to the next level. Branded experience is the child when we need the parent. What creates experience? We need (branded experience)².

Experiences are a good start, but there needs to be a master plan that governs them. With the right structure, experiences can become more than the sum of their parts. And branded experiences can become integrated, branded environments. The ultimate goal is for customers to live a "your brand" lifestyle. However, in our age of previews, consumer ratings, “try before you buy” and money back guarantees, we owe them a vision of how their "your brand" lifestyle will be. If living a "your brand" lifestyle is home, customers need a virtual tour.

While the branded lifestyle applies to any brand, nowhere do these ideas of "lifestyle", "experience" and "home" find relevance better than in residential real estate. In real estate, if a residential development is the real home, why shouldn't the development website be the virtual home?

In the ideal branded environment, every real experience would have its correlated virtual experience, but, realistically, this has limitations. For example: Just because someone might wait for an elevator in the real property does not mean that there should be a virtual preenactment of waiting for the elevator. The realizable goal is to convince the customer that the real experiences that matter have their correlated virtual experiences. In engaging a digital experience with a brand, consumers understand the real experience with that brand. A user won't take the time to find out if they can truly experience everything about a brand digitally first, but they want the feeling of knowing a brand completely through experiences in a digital environment.

IMMERSION

Creating brand-centric customers is an act of teaching them to understand the your brand's culture. We all know that cultures have unique customs, language, colors, music, etc. that one must learn in order to function effectively within the culture. Brands enjoy colorful logos, jingles, and product names and terms that uniquely identify them. Just as the best way to understand a culture is not to study the language from a textbook, but to visit the culture itself, the best way to know a brand is to become part of it. This process is called "immersion."

And why should immersion work any differently for a brand than for a culture? Customers can read the brochure to get to know you, but an immersive, interactive experience is far more effective and enjoyable for all parties.

The ultimate goal of commercial interactive design is the creation of integrated, digital environments, a.k.a. immersive experiences for its client brands.

HOW TO GET THERE

The guide to moving from isolated branded experiences to complete branded environments reveals two key steps.

Step 1: Communicating Specific Ideas
This refers to identifying the important ideas that need to be communicated. Waiting for the elevator, for example, is pretty unimportant. But what ideas are important to creating a complete understanding of your brand's real experience?

Step 2: Strategic Integration of Digital Media
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the website, touch screen, motion graphics video, cell phone game and other digital media? What is the best way for them to work together and create a complete understanding of a real experience?

-- Nate Winter