Disney and YouTube Partner to Produce Original Web Series Caleb Hamilton, November 8, 2011November 8, 2011 The Walt Disney Company and YouTube recently inked a multi-million dollar deal that seems to play on both company’s weaknesses. Disney is having trouble attracting young people looking for video content to their website, whereas YouTube is not “kid-friendly” in the eyes of some parents. Will this new deal work out for the two media companies?Disney Interactive Media and YouTube will spend a combined $10 million to $15 million on new, original web series. Disney plans to base the first series on its popular puzzle app Where’s My Water, featuring an alligator named Swampy. The videos will be distributed on a co-branded channel on Disney’s website and YouTube. Disney is currently prepping an overhaul of its website to correspond with the deal. This channel will also pull amateur video from content uploaded to YouTube on a daily basis.Disney Interactive co-president, James A. Pitaro had this to say about the new partnership:“It’s imperative to go where our audience is. [The idea is to] bring Disney’s legacy of storytelling to a new generation of families and Disney enthusiasts on the platforms they prefer.”Disney Interactive has been losing money over the last four quarters, so the pressure is on Mr. Pitaro to create videos that can be monetized quickly. YouTube also hopes to benefit from this venture by gaining credibility with parents, many of whom don’t like the fact that their children can be subjected to very inappropriate video content.“It’s an acknowledgment that we want to work with the best brands and, yes, we expect this partnership to attract new advertisers,” said Robert Kyncl, YouTube’s global head for content partnershipsMr. Kyncl emphasized that YouTube is solely acting as a distributor and has no plans to get into the production business. Disney will sell advertising inventory and give YouTube part of the revenue. In addition to original content and selected amateur video, Disney will also include video from its television shows.Mr. Pitaro told the New York Times that the Disney-YouTube deal “is a very nice first step. It shows that we’re not thinking small.” He also says that the Disney.com overhaul should be completed by fall 2012.Source: The New York Times Viral Marketing Viral Videos The Walt Disney CompanyViral videoYouTube
Viral Video: Seinfeld Trailer for George Drama May 2, 2010As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, I love it when people re-cut movies to make trailers portraying them as something very different (i.e. Sleepless in Seattle as a stalker thriller). Canadian Youtuber “lorocker” has done just that with the classic TV show Seinfeld, creating a trailer that turns it into… Read More
Iron Man 2 Viral: Stark Expo Website Launched March 30, 2010March 30, 2010When we last left the Iron Man 2 viral, all we really had was a website for Stark Industries. Now Marvel Entertainment has launched a new website for this year’s Stark Expo that features prominently in the comic book movie sequel. Find out more about StarkExpo2010.com after the jump. Read More
Take an Interactive 360° Tour of “Frankenweenie” Set June 30, 2012June 30, 2012On October 5th, Tim Burton turns his short Frankenweenie into an 3D black-and-white stop motion-animated feature film. Frankenweenie is about a boy who brings his dog back to life, but it has unintentional consequences. Disney has released an interactive video that gives you a 360° tour of the set, where… Read More