BT Vision to put ads in films
The trial, which focuses on movies offered by BT Vision's online download store, allows customers to watch movies for free in return for watching accompanying ads. BT hopes to eventually insert ads into all video on demand programming on BT Vision, which combines digital terrestrial channels from Freeview with on-demand content available via broadband. Antony Carbonari, the BT Vision interactive and commercial media director, said a rollout of the advertising service beyond the online video store would take between 12 and 18 months - if the three-month trial was a success. However, he added that even if the trial was successful, BT Vision was unlikely to phase out a pay element from its VoD service, in which viewers shell out around £3 for films or TV shows. The trial, touted as a first in the European market, will offer the comedy drama Mischief Night, gangster thriller Played and The Punk Rock Movie as free rentals. The ads contained in the films cannot be fast-forwarded when viewed on a PC. The films are available to view for 30 days after being downloaded and can be emailed to friends. The technology used for the ads - developed by Hiro Media, which has worked on video advertising models with NBC in the US and Israeli broadcaster Reshet - allows ads to be targeted according to customers' geographic location and time of day. A deal with Aegis-owned digital agency Isobar will see 30-second ads from companies including the AA, Norwich Union, Renault, Tourism Australia and Coors Beers run within the films. Ariel Napchi, the co-founder and chief executive of Hiro Media, said that the aim was to try to achieve decent cost-per-thousand rates on the in-film ads. He said: "You cannot neglect the content owner, the distributor - everyone has to have a cut of the pie for this to work." The new model is a departure for BT Vision's download store, which currently charges around £15 for a download-to-own service that provides customers with copies of films for their PC and portable devices as well as a DVD in the post. BT Vision currently runs ads only around the "near live" football content it offers by video on demand on BT Vision. However, these ads are "hand-stitched" into the content, which means they have to be assembled and inserted individually. 
Hiro Media: Piping ads into free TV downloads
The idea is simple: if you can't control the fact that your material gets online, why not try and make some money out of it? Net-savvy downloaders still get access to what they want -- TV shows they can watch on their PCs -- but you get paid. The Hiro system works using a 'codec' that you must install on any computer you want to play the files on. Changeable advertising is then inserted into the video, targeted to your geographical location and other demographic info, which is collected via the Hiro application. Fans of privacy will be unimpressed, but we'd argue the amount of data collected is reasonably small and ensures you see relevant adverts, which if you have to watch them is better than seeing ads for hygiene products, holidays and other things irrelevant to our geek demographic. ..Hiro could be a valuable way for smaller content creators to generate revenue via their productions, and that can't be a bad thing
Making money from file-sharing
A handful of start-ups, however, are developing potentially lucrative video distribution systems that put file-sharing networks to work for content owners and consumers alike. These include Hiro Media, whose advertising networks can feed commercials into video files wherever they go online… Hiro, an Israeli start-up, insert targeted, interactive advertisements into video files after they've been downloaded. Here's how Hiro's technology would work for an episode of a TV show. The company would feed authorized copies of the episode onto the major file-sharing networks, using the same format as many bootlegged files. People searching for that episode would find and download the authorized copies, but when they started playing them, they would see a message scrolling across the bottom of the screen prompting them to download Hiro's software in order to watch the entire episode. As they install the software, they're asked a few questions about themselves and their interests. The software then downloads a customized set of advertisements to run during the episode. Unlike the rest of the video, the ads cannot be fast-forwarded or removed because they're protected by digital locks. After the ads play, the software reports back to Hiro so advertisers will know when and where they played, as well as some demographic information about the viewers. If the episode is played again on the same computer, Hiro will download new ads. And as the episode spreads online through file-sharing, each successive viewer receives a new, customized set of ads. Hiro is developing multiple ways to personalize ads, varying pitches according to the viewer's location, demographics and, eventually, the videos they're previously downloaded. Their approach offers several advantages over traditional broadcast or embedded advertising techniques, which blast the same pitches to every viewer. The most important is that ads delivered dynamically by Hiro are less likely to be ignored or resented, for the simple reason that they're more timely and relevant to the viewer…The ability to customize ads by time and place is critical to unleashing the commercial potential of file-sharing networks, which can distribute video files globally at very low cost but with little control. The tools provided by Hiro restore the control demanded by advertisers, letting them dictate where their messages are seen and by what demographic group. The revenue generated may not be enough to fulfill Hollywood studios' expectations for new movies, said Ronny Golan, Hiro's co-founder. But the model works well for full-length TV shows, which have long relied on advertisers to pay the freight. Advertiser-supported distribution online is winning fans among the studios -- witness what all the major TV networks are doing this season -- but those are based on streaming, not downloading. One well-publicized example is Hulu, the joint venture by News Corp. and NBC Universal. Hulu supplies clips, TV shows and movies with embedded advertising to a handful of major Web sites for streaming, while allowing users to post links to those videos on their own blogs and social network pages. One drawback there is that streaming full-length episodes can be costly, especially when they're in high definition. Letting users download and redistribute files is much less expensive, which is why Hiro has developed ways to insert ads into media after it's been downloaded. The firms' strategy is a 180-degree shift for major entertainment companies, which have been playing defense on file-sharing networks. Today, studios and record labels are flooding those networks with bogus files in an attempt to block real copies of their content from spreading online. "Imagine, instead of flooding them with fake files, flooding them with legal ones," Golan said. Just as the demand is enormous, so is the opportunity. And the emergence of companies such as Hiro, YuMe and Brand Asset Digital is a sign that the Internet may soon give producers and writers a pot of cash worth fighting over.
BT to offer free movie downloads
The BT Vision Download Store (www.BT.com) is available to all 14 million UK broadband customers, regardless of which provider they use and can be found at www.DownloadStore.BT.com BT Vision has joined forces with media and technology developers, and from the end of this month, users will be able to download Mischief Night, Played and The Punk Rock Movie free of charge, in return for watching targeted ads. Users who want to download one of the trial films will be asked to install software from Hiro Media, which developed the ad-placing technology, and then fill out anonymous demographic details so that ads from the RAC, Norwich Union and the Territorial Army, among others, to be shown according to the answers given. Users will then have one month to watch the films and will even be able to email the movies to friends, who, after following the same process will also be able to watch for free. Antony Carbonari, BT Vision interactive and commercial media director, said: “We believe that sympathetically-placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability, will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices. We look forward to the results.” Ariel Napchi, co-founder and co-CEO of Hiro Media, said: “BT is taking an industry-leading stride as the first European broadcaster to allow users to download free movies, supported by demographically-targeted and personalised ads, that can then be shared around the internet.” Michael Phillips, BroadbandChoices.co.uk product director, said: “If this trial is successful, BT will make more of its extensive Download Store collection available for free - an exciting move for movie downloads. “What makes this so great is that customers do not need to be BT Vision customers, or even take BT Broadband - anyone will be able to download these movies. “However, customers regularly downloading big files like movies - either for free or on a pay-to-own download basis - will need to keep an eye on their download limits or risk being charged for over-usage. Use our free Broadband Download Monitor to keep track of how much you’ve downloaded so far, and even set alarms to alert you as you near your limit,” he advised
New, ads in movies that you can't zapTechnology inserts ads in films downloaded from web
But there's a catch, one with huge potential significance. The ads run within the movie and cannot be zapped or fast-forwarded through. Further, the ads can be highly targeted to that specific user, and if that user passes the movie onto a friend, the advertiser can retarget the ads to that new user. The advertiser maintains control, being able to change ads no matter where the movie ends up. “The content can’t be pirated, no matter how you distribute it. The content owner will always make money,” says Ronny Golan, co-CEO of Hiro Media, the Israel-based company that developed the technology. While things are changing quickly, downloaded movie ads typically come before or after the movie. There's no real targeting, and the advertiser hasn't nearly the flexibility in changing ads. That Hiro technology is now being tested by BT Vision in its download store. BT Vision, a unit of British Telephone, is a major broadband TV service, and it believes if the test is successful, it could well change the model of the video download business toward ad-supported movies and away from paid rentals. “We believe that sympathetically placed, targeted advertising combined with a viral film-sharing capability will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices,” says a statement from Antony Carbonari, BT Vision’s interactive and commercial media director. BT Vision faces a problem that troubles the movie business generally. With so much free content on the internet, consumers are increasingly unwilling to pay for movies. Movie studios have traditionally made about half of their money from DVD sales. “That is a significant problem for the industry,” says to Arash Amel, head of broadband media at Screen Digest, a London-based research firm. This new technology would allow studios to shift over to an ad-supported model. It would solve another problem. So far, much of the purchasing of digital movies has actually come through the purchase of devices such as iPods or the xBox to view them. You buy the device and get a free movie. “Downloads are being offered by companies to add value to existing businesses. So for anyone wanting to start a business selling movie content on a standalone basis, it is hard,” says Amel. This may help explain BT Vision’s interest in testing Hiro Media’s product. It works like this. To download a film for viewing, a customer fills in a sign-in sheet asking for the viewer's age, gender and interests. The viewer may then choose to specify the type of products they are interested in seeing commercials for. The program then downloads the movie and with it ads targeted to those interests. Now say the viewer watches the movie and then passes it on to a friend. The friend would then go through the same registration process. The advertiser can choose how often it wants a viewer to see an ad, and it can run time-sensitive ads timed to a deadline, for example, a three-day sale on dress shirts that ends on Dec. 9. The ad then expires. Viewers have the same abilities with the Hiro-rigged movie as they would with any movie, in terms of fast-forwarding, except for the ads. They have to watch them all the way through. In the BT Vision trial, three films are being offered for free viewing, “Mischief Night,” “Played” and “The Punk Rock Movie.” The consumer is able to watch the film for up to 30 days. Each film has three 30-second spots, one at 20 minutes, one at 50 minutes and one at 75 minutes. Hiro has tested its product in the U.S. on NBC’s dotComedy, a site with comedy clips, and elsewhere. The company says that it will begin making the product for devices beyond the PC next year, such as mobiles, MP3 players and even DVRs.
BT Vision Trials Ad-Supported, Free Film Downloads
British consumers will be able to access Mischief Night, Played and The Punk Rock Movie, all from FremantleMedia Enterprises, at no cost, for one month after their download from the BT Vision Download Store. Providing the viewer is online, the films will feature different ads during each broadcast. The ads themselves, which cannot be skipped, will be tailored to the viewers’ tastes using anonymous demographic information, which the user submits when they register for the service. Viewers can also send the films to friends via email to be viewed on the same terms. Breaks, which will be placed at “appropriate places” in the films, will include adverts provided by isobar, the digital advertising agency, from the AA, Norwich Union and Territorial Army, among others. Antony Carbonari, BT Vision’s interactive and commercial media director, said: “This will be a fascinating trial: the concept of targeted TV advertisements is now a reality through the combined technology behind BT Vision Download Store and Hiro’s solution. We believe that sympathetically placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability, will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices. We look forward to the results.”
BT has new vision for downloads
LONDON -- Hybrid video-on-demand service BT Vision has pacted with Hiro Media to offer free film downloads in return for watching personalized ads. BT Vision Download Store is available to all the U.K.'s 14 million broadband customers. Three pics provided by FremantleMedia Enterprises -- comedy drama "Mischief Night," gangster thriller "Played" and music doc "The Punk Rock Movie" -- are available gratis provided the customer downloads free video software from Hiro Media and provides anonymous demographic info allowing the software to select ads most suited to the user. Pics are available for a month once downloaded and different ads will be provided each time film is watched. Ads lasting 30 seconds appear three times during the films and cannot be skipped. Downloader also has the option to email the movie to friends to be viewed on the same terms. "We believe that sympathetically-placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability, will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices," said Antony Carbonari, BT Vision's interactive and commercial media director.
BT Vision Offers Free Film Downloads With Targeted Ads
BT launches ad-funded video downloads
BT says it will use this online initiative as a learning experience, assessing consumer take up and reaction to advertising-funded downloads, and experimenting with the targeted advertising format. It will then be able to draw on this knowledge when building advertising packages for its BT Vision IPTV platform which it expects to establish within the next 12-18 months. In theory advertising on the IPTV platform should be a winning approach for advertisers. It provides the facility to mix classic TV advertising (and the immersive qualities that video and the 'lean back' environment entail) with the accountability and targeting capabilities of the Internet. In practice it is still very difficult for IPTV operators to break into the advertising supply chain - most, at least in Europe, do not own any advertising slots, and most still lack the audience scale that really puts them on the radar for advertisers. It is also important in developing the capabilities to target advertisements. At the time of rental consumers will be asked to download free video software from Hiro Media, a developer of Internet ad-supported video-download technology. Viewers will then be asked to fill in a questionnaire providing anonymous demographic information allowing the software to select adverts dynamically that are most suited to the answers provided.
BT Vision trials Hiro video ad technology
The UK IPTV service is the latest to trial Hiro's dynamic ad system, which NBC Universal piloted via its DotComedy website earlier this year, and has recently been commercially deployed by Israeli broadcaster Reshet. Hiro describes its technology as "positive digital rights management," since it allows consumers to share legitimate film and TV files while including unskippable ads that change according to the individual viewer. The BT Vision trial initially will be through the telecoms company's online video download store and involve three film titles from FremantleMedia: Mischief Night, Played and The Punk Rock Movie. The inclusion of ads means BT will be offering the movies for free, rather than on the subscription model the company currently favours for its online store, while its IPTV offering is pay-per-view. Downloads of the three trial titles can be stored and watched for one month, with different ads appearing each time the film is viewed, as long as the consumer is online. Hiro's technology requires the user to install a small piece of software and provide personal information about themselves. This allows them to then share their chosen videos with friends who can watch on the same basis, again getting their own ads. "The concept of targeted TV advertisements is now a reality through the combined technology behind BT Vision Download Store and Hiro's software solution," said BT Vision interactive and commercial media director Antony Carbonari. "We believe that sympathetically placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability, will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices."
BT Trials Targeted Ad-Supported Free Movie Downloads
The technology is supplied by Israeli video ad tech company Hiro, which has recently provided similar service to NBC’s Dotcomedy.com and Israel’s own Reshet. I spoke with Hiro co-founder and CEO Ariel Napchi recently and he is convinced what he calls “positive DRM” can be a game-changer. His technology essentially bundles a codec and player client in with a movie file of any format (so it can play on multiple platforms), meaning the ad remains included even if the file proliferates - indeed, BT says viewers are free to email them to friends. A second layer adds a “geolock” and “temporal control” so media can only be played in certain regions and will expire after a set time. In the BT trial, viewers must give up demographic data so ads can be tailored.
BT offers ad-supported free movie rentals
The trial is a collaboration with Hiro Media, a 2004 startup which has developed the underlying software for the project. The company has previously conducted trials with NBC and Israeli TV station, Reshet. Three advert breaks are inserted into the average two hour film, each lasting between three and five minutes and are targeted at the user based upon a short questionnaire filled in when downloading the software. BT says the breaks are carefully edited into the film, so users won't find an advert break arbitrarily inserted into a key scene. Files are downloaded over a P2P network, and remain viewable for one month. At each viewing, different adverts will be shown to the user, and files can be distributed between users without constraint. When the codec software is inactive it will download new adverts in the background. Viewers will need to have Windows Media Player 9 installed, as well as software from Hiro. "BT believes that sympathetically-placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability will be attractive to many customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices," says Antony Carbonari, BT Vision's interactive and commercial director "We look forward to the results" Three films will be offered initially as a trial; Mischief Night, Played and The Punk Rock Movie.
BT Vision launches targeted advertisement trial with movie downloads
The BT Vision Download Store is available to all broadband subscribers in the UK, irrespective of their ISP. Once the film is downloaded, it is available for one month and providing the viewer is online, different adverts will be shown at each viewing. Viewers can also send the films to friends via email to be viewed on the same terms. “This will be a fascinating trial: the concept of targeted TV advertisements is now a reality through the combined technology behind BT Vision Download Store and Hiro’s software solution,” said Anthony Carbonari, Interactive and Commercial Media Director. “We believe that sympathetically-placed, targeted advertising, combined with a viral film-sharing capability, will be attractive to customers in conjunction with free or reduced content prices. We look forward to the results.”
Ads in P2P-shared films? BT is trialling it
The move is pretty significant, since a technology like this - if successful - would potentially make Hollywood studio’s objection to P2P file-sharing null and void. According to Hiro Media you can’t skip the ads or remove them without making the film unwatchable. But it does mean the file could go anywhere on the Net and still show adverts based on the user’s preferences when the registered to get the codec. Hiro’s service is not a P2P one but sends the ad content discretely in the user’s downtime. NBC’s dotcomedy.com service, and Israel’s TV station Reshet are also trialling the service, but the BT move is the first major one in Europe. BT Vision, BT’s IPTV service, will trial the service providing free via BT’s online store, available to 14 million UK users, regardless of which internet service provider they use. The trial will start with three free films, Mischief Night, Played and The Punk Rock Movie. Once downloaded, the film will be available for one month and providing the viewer is online, at each viewing different ads will be shown inside the video. Ads are tailored to the viewers’ tastes using anonymous demographic information, which the user submits when they register for the service. Initial advertisers include the AA, Norwich Union and the Territorial Army. Viewers can also send the films to friends via email to be viewed on the same terms. The trial will run for three months
HIRO helps TV firm to offer programme downloads
Enabled by Hiro's patent-pending technology, Reshet.tv will allow users to download the entire library of ad-supported episodes of its popular programmes Shidurey Hamahapecha and Hayisra'elim. 'We have heard broadcasters around the world speaking about new ways to deliver shows directly to fans - but Hiro has enabled Reshet to be the first TV station in the world to turn this promise into a reality', said Menni Michaeli, Head of business development and interactive, Reshet. 'Hiro's innovative solution and solid business model means Reshet can allow its fans can go online, today, and download high-quality episodes of some of the country's most popular television shows - for free'. The new service allows users to download on to their computers, full length episodes that can be viewed at any time, whether the viewer is online or offline. The shows can be watched an unlimited number of times and are not constrained by time limits or expiration dates. Reshet is able to monetise the distribution of these programmes by using the Hiro technology to insert advertisements into the programmes just like traditional broadcast viewings. The advertisements are protected from skipping and can not be stripped out of the content; this allows Reshet to offer the programmes online for free. The programmes are supported by leading advertisers including Tnuva, Netvision, Wrigley and Ssangyong, who benefit from the measurement and accuracy provided by the Hiro system. The advertisements are sold by the interactive media network, Web.3. Programmes can be legally distributed and shared by users through any peer-to-peer network or through social networks such as Facebook and Myspace - and still be monetised. Users have the option of registering anonymous demographic information to choose what type of advertisements they see, allowing for more personalised, localised or relevant campaigns. 'Reshet has always been a leader in the television market and with this move they are continuing their leadership in the online sector,' stated Ariel Napchi, Co-CEO and Co-Founder, Hiro Media. 'Hiro was created to allow broadcasters like Reshet to extend the reach of their programmes and to offer users more choices and free viewing options. 'Reshet is driving the digital entertainment revolution and opening up new opportunities for its programmes' fans'. Hiro's innovative video downloading and intelligent ad-insertion technologies create a truly viable business model for internet video distribution. The Hiro system, which dynamically adds personalised, up-to-date, unskippable, in-show commercials into video downloads, allows content owners and distributors to effectively monetise video downloads while providing free entertainment for consumers. Through a patent pending technology that protects the commercials as well as the content, distributors and owners are able to maintain control of their video revenues regardless of the download source.
Israeli TV on the Internet: ahead of the curveWritten by
Israeli TV programs available onlineReshet, HIRO team on video download service
The new service allows users to download on to their computers full length episodes that can be viewed at any time, whether the viewer is online or offline. The shows can be watched an unlimited number of times and are not constrained by time limits or expiration dates. Reshet is able to monetize the distribution of these programs by using the HIRO technology to insert advertisements into the programs just like traditional broadcast viewings. The advertisements are protected from skipping and can not be stripped out of the content; this allows Reshet to offer the programs online for free. Programs can be legally distributed and shared by users through any peer-to-peer network or through social networks such as Facebook and Myspace -- and still be monetized. Users have the option of registering anonymous demographic information to choose what type of advertisements they see, allowing for more personalized, localized or relevant campaigns.
Dot-Comedy To-Go!
Pretty cool - this is exactly what consumers crave...freedom and control. Hopefully DotComedy will soon expand this offering beyond a few select videos.
NBC Partners with HIRO Media for Ad-supported DotComedy Video
HIRO will serve up the technology to offer the service, while NBC starts off with its "Comedy to Go" video clips. NBC says they'll use the platform for all their download needs. The advertising platform will be dynamic in that it will allow NBC videos to be offered with a changing advertisement each time the viewer watches the videos. It works with offline and online viewing. Supplying unique commercials to different people at different times of the day does give advertisers more flexibility in what they embed within the video. It seems the platform will only work with Windows Media Player.
Ad-Supported Downloads
Ronnie Golan, HIRO Media’s co-founder, states that ‘our technology is completely agnostic as to how the material got to the user’. If the download is watched more than once, the ads will adjust, so the same one is not viewed repeatedly. Ads will also be brought up to date if the footage is viewed. Co-founder Arial Napchi, told Contagious that the technology is about ‘keeping everybody happy, offering cheaper distribution that is very personalised and dynamic, allowing people to watch long form high quality content, not just user-generated content’. He believes: ‘With the massive proliferation of premium online video programming in the last couple of years, it is unfathomable that distributors have not been able to find a viable business model; we developed HIRO to solve that problem.’ The technology should enable the content owners to monetize downloads better, as each time the content is viewed, not just downloaded, they receive revenue from the advertising.
US Giant NBC universal decided on a revolutionary video download system from the Israeli IT company HIRO (Translation from German):
“Video to go” gives the user the possibility to download free broadcasts on their hard disc with the HIRO software in NBC's "Dot comedy". The clue: Like on TV, the commercial breaks will be determined at certain times, whenever the user watches the video. Spots will be dynamically and actually fitted in, adjusted to the user's preferences. The Munich production company GAT represents HIRO for the German market and will shortly introduce the system to the broadcast companies and the sellers / salesmen. The market is demanding permanent free download offers, believes GAT owner Gil Bachrach, 47. HIROs “digital rights management” gives the license keepers new securities. Erasing or skipping the commercial is not possible, every single time the program is watched, new spots will be shown. Viral forwarding explicitly wanted, because the commercial client pays per use. According to the needs of the license keeper, the usage can be geographically and timely limited. The actual streaming offers appear with this technical progress as a temporary solution. For the newcomers, it will be more and more easy to get a piece of the future media cake. And this will all be without “Giant agencies”, “mass-deals” and share-deals.
NBC Unit To Enable Ad-Supported Downloads For P2P Networks
Content producers have historically locked horns with P2P networks, such as Napster and Bit-Torrent, that allow users to distribute TV shows and other multimedia freely among the online community. The deal will allow NBC's DotComedy.com's content to be downloaded freely with Hiro's codec, a program used to encode and decode digital data, that enables TV-style commercials to be imbedded in the content. Moreover, advertising will be targeted so it is relevant to the user. Hiro's codec will report back viewing figures to content providers so they can charge advertisers for how many people watched their ads. Uniquely, regardless of how the content is distributed, once downloaded, ads will continue to play, and viewing figures will be reported back. This is to say that should a TV show be downloaded and distributed illegally online, content providers would still receive revenue. "This is a way for us to release our content into the wild, to pass it around from user to user and put it on peer-to-peer networks," said Sean Redlitz, managing director of DotComedy.com, NBC Universal's online comedy Web site. "The media industry is looking for ways to give users flexibility yet still monetize the content. This is a great opportunity for NBC Universal to try this out," he added. Redlitz went on to say if the deal was successful, then other units of NBC Universal would be interested. "We've talked to advertisers, and they're really intrigued. It makes peer-to-peer a viable option." NBC Universal is 80% owned by General Electric (GE) and 20% by Vivendi (12777.FR). Hiro's system uses five types of personalization in order to direct particular ads to particular users and record the data, regardless of where the content is viewed. "Two months ago if you said P2P in the same room as a content producer, they'd kick you out. Now they see it as a way to see money," says Ariel Napchi, joint founder and co-chief executive. "We believe this NBC deal can bring us into the mainstream and prove there is a valid business model for Internet downloads." To get access to the content, users fill out optional basic personal information such as age and gender. In Hiro's native Israel, where the company has gone live with VOFree TV, Napchi says 70% of users fill out this information. Users also specify their location to localize ads and select what type of ads they'd like to see. "Users have categories of adverts to choose from such as sport, cars or fashion," says Ronny Golan, fellow co-founder and co-CEO. Content is further targeted as each video itself is categorized. For instance, a motor sports program is paired with ads about cars. Golan says the fifth personalization will be added next year once more content and advertisers are on board. "We want to take the last 100 videos someone looks at and see what lifestyle someone leads to send them certain adverts," he says. Hiro intends to start a trial with a small U.K.-based content producer in the next few weeks and said it's in talks with numerous major players.
Did you hear the one about the Israeli inventor, the New York media mogul and the Bollywood film distributor?
Dotcomedy offers downloads of comedy video clips that will play in Windows Media Player, but some of them can only be viewed using Hiro's codec. Hiro's software periodically downloads fresh advertisements from Hiro's servers, and each time a video clip is played using the codec, it splices some in, reporting tracking information back to the server so that the content owner can be paid. Advertisements can also be tailored to the interests of viewers who fill in the optional registration form. Hiro doesn't aim to limit distribution of video clips: only the viewing of them, so there's no problem even if protected content slips out onto P-to-P (peer-to-peer) networks or is burned onto CDs and handed around, according to Hiro's co-CEO Ariel Napchi. However a potential viewer receives the content, whether by direct download, over a P-to-P network or burned onto a CD, recently downloaded ads can still be spliced in by the media player. At Opus Media Ltd. in London, CEO Darren Hop sees Hiro's system as a way to reduce distribution costs at his Bollywood.tv channel. Each time someone pays to download one of his movies, he pays for the bandwidth they consume. The movies often run well over two hours, and involve the download of over a gigabyte of data. Revenue could be as high with Hiro's advertising-supported system as for pay-per-view, he said, but costs will be much lower, as each film downloaded can be watched multiple times, bringing in revenue with each viewing. For now, Opus is only testing the waters: Hop has just received the first movies encoded with Hiro's software, and will soon begin evaluating how customers react to the system. The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.
Is NBC Ready to Embrace Hiro-powered P2P?
Hiro: Making Ad Insertion Dynamic
Saving the Cheerleader: Hiro has a plan to bring TV commercials to the Internet and save the world.
What makes Hiro most interesting is that it is being taken very seriously by TV networks, with trials shortly to begin in both the U.S. and Australia. The first U.S. trial begins this week, in fact, with one of the big four commercial broadcast networks. Another U.S. trial should begin next month with a major basic cable network. And Hiro is already being used by one commercial customer in Israel." http://www.pbs.org/cringely/pulpit/2007/pulpit_20070420_001960.html.
Commercials for Internet TV?
Ad-supported video system for Macs debuts
A new solution enables content providers to distribute video to Mac and PC users through file-sharing networks with ads ingrained inside the film files, opening up new earnings opportunities for film producers. The solution is the brainchild of Israel’s HIRO Media and is the first of its kind globally available for Macs, the company claims. The solution means users can directly download films and shows directly from content providers’ websites, through peer-to-peer networks or from social networking sites to their PC's and Mac’s. The video can be viewed when the user is online or offline, and is downloaded as a single file which works in QuickTime of Windows Media Player, with ads integrated into the programming. Now the technology is proven, the company plans to arrange deals with content providers for the distribution of their content on an ads-supported model. The Mac version will be first launched in Israel. with a series of videos being made available in the first wave, the company hopes to introduce its service to other territories this year. “Mac users have been technologically tied to a limited universe of paid and rental-based download sites; this is the first time they will have a free, legal video download option,” said Ariel Napchi, co-founder and CEO of HIRO Media. “Content owners and distributors have repeatedly stated that a solution was needed to provide Macs with the same video file as PCs, that could be watched on any platform and that would support embedded, targeted ads. Now they have it.” Advertisements are targeted to users’ preferences, so viewers will only see the advertisements they have requested. The embedded ad-solution means that revenue is always generated, whenever and wherever the content is viewed. Advertisers can change the mid-roll advertisements each time a video is viewed. A recent UK trial with BT Vision’s Download Store enabled BT’s 14 million broadband customers to download movies for free
HIRO offers AD-supported videos for mac
Hiro employs a system that embeds advertisements into video programming. The software's already available or Windows users and launches on the Mac first in Israel, home of Hiro Media, where it's being used by "a leading terrestrial broadcaster, several sports and children's channels." The company expects the Mac service to roll out to other territories, including the USA and Australia, later in 2008. Hiro's technology provides unskippable mid-roll advertisements that are displayed each time a video is viewed. The company claims this enables the video to be distributed over Web sites, P2P networks and other systems without the provider needing to worry about piracy, as the ad revenue is generated, whenever and wherever the content is viewed. It works on both Windows Media Player and QuickTime.
HIRO Launches Ad Supported Video Downloads
With the HIRO solution, both Mac and PC users can download videos playable with either Windows Media Player or QuickTime. The videos include seamless, dynamic ads that are based on user preferences can be changed from viewing to viewing. With the HIRO solution, both Mac and PC users can download videos playable with either Windows Media Player or QuickTime. The videos include seamless, dynamic ads that are based on user preferences can be changed from viewing to viewing. The service will launch first in Israel with U.S. and Australian service to follow in 2008. "With the HIRO Media solution, users can download films and programs directly from content providers’ websites, via P2P networks or from social networking sites, straight to their PC's and Mac’s. The file can be viewed when the user is online or offline, delivering complete freedom and choice," HIRO's announcement said. "Mac users are now able to download movies legally, on their own terms which they can watch whenever, and however they like," added Ronny Golan, Co-Founder & CEO of HIRO Media. "With the added Mac flexibility, the HIRO system further delivers an experience that meets the demands of the consumer while offering a viable solution for content providers and advertisers." The service was based on the motivation by content owners and distributors to provide a cross-platform system that would support embedded, targeted ads. "Now they have it," the HIRO CEO said
Hiro Media now support Apple Macs
The company said that this technology would allow Mac users to watch their free, ad-supported video downloads. They have been already offering the service for Windows OS users. The software for Apple Mac platform is currently being provided to Israel based customers. Its availability would be expanded to other markets later this year.
BT Vision Download Store Trials Ad-Supported Movie Downloads
W00t! W00t! W00t!
Sounds like an oxymoron? Not when you look at what these companies, namely Hiro Media out of Israel and YuMe based in Redwood City, California are doing. Each company has identified the basic sitch: viewers want to watch video content for free and content owners need to make money off their content. Both companies offer ad-supported video downloads. So, even if you are getting your TV show from BitTorrent, for example, if you download the file whose content owner had availed themselves of either Hiro Media's or YuMe's technology, you will get one that has embedded in-stream, unskippable, personalized and dynamic commercials within the content. This means that content owners can profit from each viewing of the content no matter where the film, TV show, music video was downloaded from. Their innovation is this: It enables content owners to regain control over the distribution of their product and generate revenues from each and every use. It works for streaming video as well and on any platform be it PC, TV, mobile and more. The ads are dynamic and relevant to each viewer. It's good for advertisers, too. This targeted system provides advertisers, as well as the publishers/content owners, the unprecedented ability to identify, classify and track content to ensure brand safety, contextual relevance, controlled syndication and consistent delivery across all digital media platforms -- web, downloads, mobile and IPTV. For example, if I downloaded a my friend's documentary from BitTorrent, where he himself placed it, I wouldn't have to feel like a big heel, because I would know that by watching the embedded Toyota Prius commercial (I drive a Prius) and the wine commercial (I drink wine) that he would be making some profit from my viewing. Not bad. It takes and improves on a system that we are all habituated to already. It's seamless.
10 innovators to watch: Ronny Golan and Ariel Napchi
How they're innovating: Ariel Napchi and Ronny Golan are trying to put a positive spin on digital rights management (DRM), one of the ideas that can raise hackles among technophiles. "We call our approach Positive DRM," says Napchi, co-founder of Hiro-Media, a startup in Tel Aviv, Israel. "We think you should be able to watch a show as many times as you like, pass it to your friends, and put it on file-sharing networks." Peer-to-peer networks have long been seen as an enemy of media companies. (MGM took two of the networks, Grokster and Morpheus, to the Supreme Court in 2005 -- and won.) Golan says that in the company's early days, floating the idea of using the networks to distribute officially sanctioned content was unfathomable.
Rambler To Launch Ad-Funded Video Downloads
Rambler Media has partnered with Hiro Media, an Israeli developer of ad-supported video-download technology, whose software allows to dynamically select advertisements that are suited to demographical information users provide when they sign-up for the service. The advertisers will be offered to buy advertisements at $350 per 1,000 video views. The initial monthly audience of Rambler Cinema is expected to reach 1 million users. Rambler Vision, a video sharing service of Rambler has 1.8 million monthly users, according to the company
Nine offers free Canal Road downloads
Every other episode will be available to download immediately after it airs. Last year Nine offered the premiere of Sea Patrol prior to its premiere, and planned to do likewise with Underbelly -until court action put a stop to that. This time it's all legal and endorsed. "All downloaded episodes of Canal Road can also be legally shared with family and friends by saving them onto a DVD or through the existing peer-to-peer file sharing programs," ninemsn said in a statement. Set in a medical-legal centre in the heart of Melbourne, Canal Road stars Paul Leyden, Diana Glenn, Sibylla Budd and Brooke Satchwell. The series can be downloaded from ninemsn.com.au/canalroad and premieres on Wednesday April 16.
TV takes the online challenge
Now ninemsn and the Nine Network have broken ranks, launching their own trial two weeks ago. It is early days, but if the Australian experiment succeeds local broadcasters will have finally found a way to control their programming on the internet without it being pirated. The new technology will also generate audience data and revenues from advertisers at the same time. Until now, much of the effort by broadcasters around the world to deal with online distribution of long-form shows has been via the struggling and often risky notion of paid downloads. The British online monitoring group Envisional says that among the most widely pirated television downloads worldwide are 24, The Simpsons, The O.C., Lost and Desperate Housewives. "The reason people are illegally using P2P [peer-to-peer] networks is simply because content isn't available elsewhere," says Ten's general manager, Digital Media, Damian Smith. "If we could use P2P networks to assist in the legal distribution of content, it's a very different story and one we along with all broadcasters would be most interested in." The sort of technology Smith is talking about has just been launched in Australian by the Melbourne-based Clear Light Digital, under licence from the Israeli start-up Hiro Media. While Seven and Ten have been briefed on the new technology, which enables TV shows and films to be released online and onto dreaded peer-to-peer networks such as Bit Torrent and eDonkey with embedded broadcast-style TV ads, the Nine Network has made the first move with two local drama shows - Canal Road and Sea Patrol. PBL Media's general manager, digital services, Guy Gadney, says the Nine/ninemsn trials are partly motivated by the company not wanting to experience the same train crash as the music industry as a result of illegal file sharing activities. That's not least because video file sharing in Australia is no small business. Research by the German online traffic management company iPoque says 57 per cent of all Australian internet traffic is generated by peer-to-peer networks and about 60 per cent of those volumes is for video - much of it illegal TV shows and Hollywood films. "There is certainly lessons to be learnt from the music industry and that's why we are trialling what we are trialling," says Gadney. "Once we see how people are downloading and how people are behaving we can take it further. At the moment it's supposition and we want to get away from supposition to the hard facts of how people are using [video and P2P networks]." The latest public figures available for online long-form content trials are from the BBC's iPlayer initiative in Britain. In the three weeks after its Christmas launch last year, more than 1 million people had viewed free programming using the new application. Clear Light Digital's managing director, Jamie Silver, says Hiro is not a media player - it uses Windows Media Player and QuickTime - but rather a way of "encoding and delivering files". "These new technologies turn everything on its head," Silver says. "Until now content producers and broadcasters have been about restricting online distribution. They've seen P2P networks as the enemy. Most of the attempts to date have proven vulnerable to hacking." Silver says Hiro is foolproof to hackers while allowing broadcasters and other content owners to insert and change TV-style ads anywhere, any time inside the programming. Hiro's technology, which both NBC in the US and BT's Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) venture in Britain are also trialling, allows ninemsn users to download full episodes of its shows, embedded with local advertising. They can then upload those shows to peer-to-peer networks to share with anyone although the trick is those who want to view the content have to download Hiro's software once to do it. Gadney says it is too early to gauge response to Canal Road and Sea Patrol after a few weeks. But he expects it to be a "slow build". He says ninemsn has not dropped its paid download service for shows such as McLeod's Daughters and CSI, although he hinted that interest for the local drama has far surpassed that for CSI.
Rambler Launching TV/Movie Downloads Site, A 'Russian Hulu'
Programming comes from Russia's Star Media, TV Scope, TNT, NTV and CTV networks. "By the middle of 2009, it will contain approximately 2,000 hours, all premium TV series as well as full-length Russian feature films and TV movies," Rambler's sales and strategic partner director Anna Znamenskaya told me. "The television channels rarely hold non-linear rights so we are dealing directly and only with the content owners who hold the relevant rights for our use." Russia's online population is forecast to become Europe's second largest on 40 million next year, thanks to falling broadband prices. " We are going to further develop the video part of the portal and Kinozal is one of the steps in this direction," Znamenskaya said. "Any service that is attractive for the user makes Rambler more competitive. Our video service is the first of its kind in the Russian market and we expect great traction." Rambler has not yet announced the service, which has not yet been spoken about outside Russia, so you're pretty much reading it here first. Rambler's service is being built by VOWeb, a new UK company established to construct video services powered by technology from Israel's Hiro Media. Hiro's Positive DRM invention bundles a multi-platform video codec and advert in with a movie file, while a second layer adds a geolock and temporal control to ensure the file can be viewed only in certain territories and will expire after a set time. People are free to spread the downloads around - as long as the viewing machine is online, VOWeb and Rambler will know who watched. Ad sales are handled by IMHO VI and downloads are big - up to 1.1Gb - but Rambler reckons it has a fast internet backbone. Hiro CEO Ariel Napchi told me he expects CPMs of just below the average $45 to $50 achieved by files with Positive DRM. "The idea of providing free legitimate content to the user where, ordinarily, they settle for bad quality pirate copies seems to be a 'win-win' situation for users as well as content owners and advertisers," Znamenskaya added. "Positive DRM helps us in receiving the rights to the content as, for the first time, we can ensure our partners that their content will be protected even through file sharing, which is popular in Russia as in other countries." Though Rambler is VOWeb's first partner, it is targeting eastern Europe, with sites due in Poland and Hungary by January 2009 and, later, in Romania, Czech Republic, Serbia, Croatia, Turkey and Argentina. Hiro's technology has also been used by BT Vision, NBC's Dotcomedy.com and Israel's own Reshet.
HIRO Media and Pando Have Alliance for P2P Distribution of Online Video Advertising
We don't know when customer deals will be announced, but this tie-up makes a lot of sense to us. It is inevitable that more video distribution will shift from streaming to download. And for broadcasters and advertisers, distribution via cost-effective P2P is inevitable. I spoke with HIRO co-founder Ronny Golan in Los Angeles last month. Below is my interview with Pando CEO Robert Levitan done in Manhattan in May. We have republished both interviews with today's news.
HIRO Media Sees the Big Upside in Advertising into Downloaded Videos...Co-Founders Named Top Innovators by Variety
Although paid downloads have become a big business, thanks largely to Apple's iTunes, advertiser-supported downloaded videos are only now beginning to emerge. Big hurdles exist: The biggest issue is how to change downloaded ads in a video which has been saved to a device. The other is how to track the usage of downloaded media which are shared with others. HIRO Media, an Israeli-based start-up, has a solution for ad serving into downloaded media. I caught up with co-founder Ronny Golan in Los Angeles earlier this month. Ronny gives a compelling argument for the economics of downloaded media. For an analysis of HIRO, check out this recent story by Scott Kirsner writing in Variety. Variety recently named Golan and his co-founder Ariel Napchi among the 10 most important innovators in digital media and entertainment.
The two faces of DRM
Whether the user chooses to download content from a peer-to-peer network, a social network or even from a friend's CD, Hiro software prevents ads from being skipped or fast forwarded. The technology also offers broadcasters a locking solution that means content is destroyed after a certain period - ideal if the broadcaster only has the rights to distribute recently viewed footage online. Says Golan: "Any solution for the internet needs to take into consideration peer-to-peer and social networking. Rather than block these channels, the question is how can a broadcaster take advantage and monetise these channels?"
Underbelly online downloads smash records
The official Underbelly website ninemsn.com.au/underbelly launched this week, with each episode available exclusively for free and legal download through ninemsn’s Catch-Up TV service after they air on Channel Nine. Carolyn Managh, marketing director at ninemsn said: “We are thrilled to be able to offer people the option to download Underbelly A Tale of Two Cities, and the past few days have really shown the high demand for services like ninemsn’s Catch-Up TV. The launch episode has been the most downloaded video in the short time since it has been available. We also anticipate that Underbelly, A Tale of Two Cities will break the record for the most downloaded program on ninemsn.” ninemsn began using Hiro technology to offer free and legal downloads in its Catch-Up TV service 12 months ago. Hiro technology allows people to download uninterrupted, complete episodes of popular programs and also allows them to be shared. In 2008, Catch-Up TV was the only place to watch McLeod’s Daughters for free after it was taken off air, while programs like Sea Patrol and Canal Road were made available on Catch-Up TV before they were aired on television.
Underbelly Episodes Freely Available Online
UBegging to pay its way
their ads are being bracketed with. Again, few legal sites offer this. But the fact that these obstacles were being addressed during MIPCOM shows how far and fast things are moving. As Hurley said of YouTube: "It's not just about dogs on skateboards any more."
Case study: HIRO Media
act too. One such company is Israel-based Hiro Media, which embeds personalised, unskippable ads in video clips. The company has partnerships with Australia’s NineMSN and Rambler Media, Russia’s equivalent to Hulu. Its technology is also being trialled by NBC in the US and BT Vision in the UK. Co-founder Ronny Golan explains: “We’re reducing or freezing the cost of distribution, since it doesn’t matter how the file gets to your PC. If you download it from BitTorrent, you will still see it with ads, and with different ads from the ones I viewed, depending on your profile. You cannot pirate the file. “And if I see the same video twice I’ll watch it with different ads, so it’s always up-to-date. It doesn’t matter if I downloaded it a week, a month or a year ago. And of course, each time I view the content, it’s being reported to a central server, so we know to bill the advertiser and pay money to the content owner. “You can fast-forward the content but not the advertisement. We call it positive DRM, which is not an oxymoron. On the one hand we protect the ads, but on the other we put no restriction on the user – they can redistribute the file anywhere.” Fellow co-founder Ariel Napchi adds: “We’re doing mostly 15- to 30-second instream spots – traditional TV material. The distribution costs can be lowered by as much as 90%. Because we have personalisation we can also get a much higher CPM and increase the revenue. We are getting CPMs on average of US$45 – in some places even higher. It really opens the door for online video as a commercial proposition.”
A major breakthrough in the world of video web advertising: YNET presents a real alternative for television advertising
Ynet Israel's most successful portal and video destination site announced today the completion of integrating HIRO media's advertising video system. The HIRO system will support also Ynet affiliates HOT (Israel cable company) and Reshet (Israel leading broadcaster). HIRO's advertising platform enables websites to offer superior advertising capabilities to those existing in the television and internet markets.By doing so it allows the internet advertising budgets to compete with the television budgets, for the first time, from a superior point . HIRO's system allows a variety of advertising capabilities, among these unique capabilities are: Segmentation of viewers by their age and gender, syndication, identifying views according to the different viewers, constructing a serial campaign, break creation and management and more.These capabilities, allow advertisers for the very first time to compare and compete between the efficiency of television advertising and the efficiency of internet advertising. Ynet's VP Sales, Barak Kalmanovitch: "We realized that the current situation of the video web advertising market is not satisfactory. As part of our attentive approach to the needs of the advertisers we decided to implement HIRO's technology which allows, for the first time, comparison and evaluation of the different media new and traditional. Kalmanovitch says that through HIRO's system the advertisers will be able to use demographic targeting ,content targeting and frequency caps . HIRO Media is a leading company in the world of online video advertising and professional video content. HIRO's platform is installed throughout the world, including Europe's biggest video advertising network as in other sites in Russia, Hungary and the United States. HIRO is represented in Israel by WEB 3.0.
Why online video has only now truly arrived
I believe this because for the first time in the history of advertising, in territories as large as the US and as small as Israel, we’re seeing revenues per user per hour generated from online video finally surpassing those from TV advertising. However, in the UK this remains uncharted territory and as such there’s scope for phenomenal growth. To understand this revenue shift, we must recognise that online video advertising isn’t an extension of the display ad environment. It’s a delicate mix of TV know-how about planning and managing campaigns and the internet’s power of addressability, interaction and real-time optimisation. Years of work in the media industry have taught me that advertisers cherish the practices of media planning proven over the past five decades on TV. Yet these practices alone can’t harness the huge benefits online media can bring to the ad industry. Today there’s a way to combine the knowledge of TV advertising, incorporating all its good practices, with the under-utilised power of online media’s addressability and interactive abilities. At Hiro Media this approach is helping publishers and content owners to increase their CPM by more than 50%. Our publishers are seeing more than 25% growth in inventory sales while those using demographic targeting tools integrated into the Hiro platform are doubling the click-through rates of their campaigns. This is just the beginning. One of the next challenges is to add premium capabilities to the video ad in order to avoid the threat of commoditisation of online video advertising, providing justified reasons for brands to accept the higher costs of video. Again we can use knowledge gained from the TV ad industry. Agencies and their clients have developed ways to optimise the effect of advertising on TV, such as calculating reach, serialising campaigns and targeting content and audiences. Yet legacy ad server platforms have found it hard to replicate this complex world of TV media planning, resulting in lower online CPMs than comparable outcomes of TV campaigns. At Hiro Media we’ve integrated these abilities into our platform. This means we can provide demographic targeting, blacklists, reach calculators and serialised campaigns combined with creative optimisation based on click-through rate, advanced creatives, tag targeting and behavioural analysis. The next step to converting online pennies into pounds is to harness the opportunity to increase ad distribution. One of the best ways online reaches new audiences is by player and content syndication. This in itself requires unique capabilities from the online video ad platform. For instance, it must support revenue shares and splits — the payment calculation between the syndicator and content owner. This same system can also be used for rights management — the calculation of royalties for each party. This issue also affects ad networks, which need to integrate with a large number of players. At Hiro Media, we focused on the need for player integration and have created a unique integration matrix. Integration with a standard player takes 24 hours and a proprietary player within two days. The industry needs to accept that online video advertising isn’t merely an extension of display but a new breed, one that combines knowledge from over five decades of TV advertising with the power of new media. At Hiro, we strongly believe it’s only by synthesising the two that the true revenue potential of online video advertising can be realised. Ariel Napchi, co-founder and CEO, Hiro Media |
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BT Vision is to try putting unskippable ads into films in a move it hopes to extend to its video-on-demand service.
