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Viddler Launches Innovative Video Monetization Plan

centernetworks.com — Viddler, the online video sharing service, is announcing the launch of their innovative contextual advertising program today. Ads are tied to timed tags and show up on the timeline. There is a 50/50 rev share for publishers.

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  • box7, on 11/15/2007, -2/+9I seriously think this is an awesome twist on monetizing video. The fact that you can choose where and how you want to advertise is great, the fact that you can make something off of it is great as well.
    • RichLatherX23, on 11/15/2007, -4/+3I find it somewhat interesting that you'd be the first to comment, seeing as how you've got cdevroe right at the top of your friends list.

      Just an observation.
      • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2RichLatherX23: Austin (box7) is one of my friends. But I did not link him to this digg nor ask him to comment. Besides, is that what friends are for? To applaud your hard work? Thanks for commenting Austin!!
      • box7, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3I guess it would be fair to note that i was a viddler user first. The community is pretty tight and really well developed which is how i came in further contact with cdevroe.
        • RichLatherX23, on 11/15/2007, -1/+4Thanks for the explanations. It does help my opinion, but it still didn't look good from the outset.
        • djloche, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3I'd think it looks good. To know that the Viddler community is on top of things and pays attention to the announcements, and that Viddler users (like myself) would come to Digg to talk about it rather than just talk about it on Viddler forums, etc.
          I don't think that because cdevroe is on the top of his friends list is an issue because colin is on the top of a ton people's lists. He's always posting new videos and is a huge part of the community, despite the fact that he works for Viddler.
          Digg is known for being brutally honest and so it's good to see people throw down their true opinion and give criticism.
    • royalpurple, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Great if you're collecting the money, not if you're forced to watch it.
      • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2royalpurple: You can turn them off as a viewer as well. It is all about choice.
  • valueneutral, on 11/15/2007, -2/+4Wow, I had thought the new Viddler version would just be a refresh of the site. This is way cooler. Way to go, guys.
  • TheMack, on 11/15/2007, -2/+4Interesting indeed...Viddler seems to be pushing the envelope again.
  • plbland, on 11/15/2007, -4/+5Oh My God - Adblock... save me :(
  • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -1/+10Thanks for the kind words everyone! We're really happy to finally be rolling this out for everyone. Feedback welcome!
    • scottytoodope, on 11/15/2007, -3/+2hey colin!
      mad love from philly
  • sint4x, on 11/15/2007, -0/+4I still don't quite agree with the whole idea. Posting comments inside a video is a cool idea, but how would you like it if our Digg comments were actually embedded inside the articles we read, at various places?
    I don't know, maybe I am totally missing the point.
    • plbland, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1I agree. I'd be happy for related ads - outside of the content - say above, or to the right of the video. If you're covering the content then this is going to annoy people.
      • sandieman, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2@plbland we have been thinking about the "annoying factor" and developed alot of things like transparencies and a very small ad unit to try and make up for it. Someone brought up the idea of a one click "hide button". We also have been thinking about voting mechanism which would get the unwanted content out. Let us know as we are very interested in hearing how we could continue to do better!
        • plbland, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2If it were my design then I'd be implementing it within the flash area, but as a separate box above the video itself, or perhaps a transparent ident in the top left hand corner (could be a see through image of an ipod) which explains more when the users mouse rollsover.

          It's tough and its' a difficult contest between conversions and user experience. Definitely impressed with the contextual element.
          • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1Above the ad? Others are suggesting below, but above the "progress bar" or "timeline". Thoughts?
    • sandieman, on 11/15/2007, -0/+7Hi sint4x, viddler co-founder here, it's all about interacting with the video content and continuing the conversation wherever the video may go. Right now, it may not be super apparent, but you can thumbs down comments inside the flash player, the same way you can on Digg. Growing upon this strategy will help us keep alot of the unnecesarry noise down in the future as this platform continue to grow. Also, if you don't like commenting, tagging or relevant ads in the video? All of these are options that you control.
      • sint4x, on 11/15/2007, -1/+3I can say my experience with Viddler is minimal and as a web developer I think the idea is cool. If you put the community aspect in context, the idea makes more sense to me. joenewbreed described it well.

        Another thing, your response to diggers is beyond impressive. I respect Viddler without even using it because you do that.
        • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1Thanks so much sint4x. Maybe we'll see a video from you soon? ;)
    • joenewbreed, on 11/15/2007, -1/+3Basically, people have to stop comparing Viddler to YouTube. They're not the same thing. People put videos on Viddler to share with the community and interact with the community, not just for people to watch it. Likewise, your common Viddler user doesn't just sit and watch people's videos, they comment and discuss things through them. It's not just about watching a video.
      • djloche, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Exactly, viddler isn't about kicking back and letting your brain rot.
      • sandieman, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Very well put.
  • RichLatherX23, on 11/15/2007, -1/+3Looks like VH1's Pop-Up Video, only more intrusive! If these ads and comment tags were to be put somewhere other than the video frame itself I'd be more inclined to pursue it.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3Like an ad inside of the HTML itself? The only problem with that method is that the ads wouldn't be "portable" and wouldn't show on other sites that use our communities videos on their sites. Also (as Rob said in another comment in this thread) you can easily turn these off. Just click MENU > and then the top-left most button.

      We appreciate the feedback though. Anyway you could see to improve the ads obtrusiveness where they are?
      • RichLatherX23, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Lower the transparency a bit, maybe? Look at the bits with the guitar being played; a larger ad would obscure a fair bit of the strumming.
        • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1We've had these ad units in development for months, literally. And - when we first tried to make them almost invisible they were actually MORE annoying. If you send me a private message I can get you on a beta team and we can see if your ideas play out. We'll mess with them a little for you to take a peak at.
  • sonycam, on 11/15/2007, -0/+4So, do you (video publisher) select the ads or do ad companies 'add' their ads? I actually thought it was voice activated to start with, now that would be really cool. Really good to see such an innovative system though, really sets them out from the rest of the video streaming bunch.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3You can choose to use Amazon ads or ads that have been purchased through bidding on keywords within our own closed system. Please see our blog for more information. Oh, and yes, the producer can choose to show ads on any tags they want to.
  • exidor, on 11/15/2007, -0/+7Viddler has a great social community-building thing going on. It reminds me a lot of the early days of Flickr. You don't have to be an iJustine or Gary Vaynerchuk to get something featured and start building a group of friends. They're also fairly responsive to feedback -- I'm sure cdevroe is going to read every comment on this story -- so the ad system will undoubtedly evolve over time to find a balance where it's not too intrusive yet still effective. I'm hoping so anyway; it's a clever idea, but I think the ads currently cover a bit too much of the video they're popping up over.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -1/+2Thanks for the feedback, and yes - I will respond to every comment. Even this one! How would you make them cover things up less? Less height? Less width? Less opaque? I would love to hear your ideas.
      • noobalicious, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3How to make the ads less intrusive? How about moving them off the video itself?

        Something like this:

        Ya know how there's black bars for a widescreen video if you're watching it on a standard def TV? Use something like that as your "ad-space" or comment space. You could artificially account for this in the player by limiting the size/resolution of the video, and then having the app be larger than that. So if you say your video can only be a maximum of 640x480, make the player size 800x600 and now you've got more space to work with. Have the application be layered in that the background layer is the 800x600, not allowing content to overlap the space that the 640x480 video would take up, then the top layer would be the video.

        Or, in keeping with the old-media method of "cut to commercial", have certain points where the video switches to ads. Something like what ABC does with their episodes online. I remember when that first came out I thought it was great. The ads weren't just stupid text ads, they were (somewhat) interactive multi-media. One that stands out was a bath product (Oil of Olay) or something like that, and once the spot was over, you could click to find out more about it, or even get a coupon for the product. I think that's an ideal way to do things. Not just having a text ad, but actually offering some incentive for watching a commercial.

        Also, you have to limit the amount of crap that can be attached to videos, since that was just a pain in the ass to watch. It's like watching a YouTube video with the comments embedded into the video. Although the VH-1 comparison was accurate as well. Except instead of the funny/snarky/informative information, you get RandomJackass19402's comment about "teh bewbs". And it's possible that someone could upload a video, attach a ***** ton of ads, and it'd be more like an infomercial than something with valid content. Kinda like the demo was...

        It's promising. Very promising. Just keep working on it.
        • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1I like your first idea very, very much. Actually pushing the video up just a little to allow for an ad to show directly beneath without actually being an "overlay". Perhaps we could even allow the producer to choose? We've been finding that people actually like to interact with the advertisements within their videos - so in that case the pop-up type may work great. While other times, the producer may want the video show underneath the video.

          Great suggestion.
  • royalpurple, on 11/15/2007, -4/+3Just horrible. I seriously hope this isn't the future of video, I'm never going to want to watch something with ads intruding over the video itself. It's never going to be unobtrusive enough. At least TV ads wait their turn. I like video sites with players that totally disappear so you can focus on the video itself. Watching Viddler is like getting raped in the eyes.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Getting raped in the eyes must really, really hurt. And we don't want to hurt our viewers. HELP US IMPROVE! How can we show contextual ads without being the least bit obtrusive? Any credit for being able to turn this on/off? Lets face it, Advertising is really really hard to strike the perfect balance between obtrusiveness and value for both the producer and the advertiser. We're trying very hard to strike this balance but we can't do it alone. We need your feedback. We want conversation, and we're starting it with this launch. Please try to give us some ideas on how we can make this better.

      If you like to send me a private message (this goes out to anyone in this thread) please feel free to do so. We want nothing more than to find the balance and we know that with enough effort, time, and help from our community we can do it.
      • royalpurple, on 11/15/2007, -1/+1You missed my point. It's never going to be unobtrusive enough.
        • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1As a fan of video - I do know exactly what you mean.
      • DJNewStyle, on 11/15/2007, -0/+4Stop the popups from displaying over the video. Increase the height of the player and create a display pane for your messages. When the user hovers over a marker on the timeline, display them there.
        • freshyill, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Or better yet, maybe an option to choose your default Viddler player skin, either by the video's publisher, or the viewer.
        • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1DJNewStyle: This is a great idea. Thanks for the suggestion.
      • subscriber, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2One problem I can see for advertisers here is that most people will not want to interrupt the video while it's playing to navigate to the advertiser's site. It would break up the flow. It might be wise to make an option to queue up "clicks" so you can click on something that interests you while you're watching the video, and then be taken to the sites (or be shown a list of sites you selected) when it finishes.

        For those of you who say that any and all ads are unwelcome -- image watching a video review of HDTVs on Cnet, and you decide you like the third one they talk about - you click on the link, and when the video is over you are taken to a site where you can find out more about the product.

        It doesn't have to be advertising. Say I made a video that had music by my favorite artist -- click the link to be taken to the band's site.

        Could this ever be made compatible with the iPod? Imagine watching a video on the iPod while riding the train to work -- when you get home you sync the iPod and you get a dialog saying "You clicked on the following links while watching such and such a video -- would you like to visit those sites now?"


        • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1subscriber: Your ideas are right on track. I like the queuing idea - something definitely to think about. We need to find a way to not break up the experience. We want it to be seamless. As far as it working within something like QuickTime - I feel this might be coming in a few years. The simple fact that Flash now supports playing H.264 videos might be the step in the right direction towards something like this.

          Thanks for the feedback!
    • freshyill, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2TV ads wait their turn? You've got to be kidding me. Have you watched TV lately? DVR and the Internet is killing their advertising model because people can skip them. That's why you keep seeing more and more product placement on TV. Try watching the Office. It's only bad when it's really obvious. If they find that the ads are annoying people, Viddler could easily make some display changes, but this is the future.
      • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Here here! And I'm sure we'll need to continually adjust how our ads are displayed. Keep sending your feedback.... please.
  • djloche, on 11/15/2007, -0/+6I love viddler because it takes video to a participatory level. Anyone can add a tag or a comment and have it show up in the timeline. This isn't your grandparents boob tube where they sit back and brainwash you with programming and commercials.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+6Though if your grandparents would like to watch Viddler videos, they are more than welcome to. ;)
  • rezzub, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3Does anyone know if they plan to license this tech? I generally like the idea, but I don't want to have to host my vids on viddler.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2rezzub: If you'd like, you can send me a private message or email me cdevroe [at] viddler.com and we'll see what we can make available to you.
  • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1If I have not replied to anyone's feedback please let me know. I have Digg's comments fully expanded but I'm finding it hard to keep up-to-date. Is there an easier way? Either way -- thanks to everyone for all of the great feedback. This is great and will help us make our service so much better knowing what you all think. We genuinely appreciate it.
  • thomn8r, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1Irrespective of how cool and innovative the underlying tech happens to be, the service with the least obtrusive, intuitive interface and the best content will win. Period.
    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1Exactly: Audiences will not care "how" something is built. Just that it works and doesn't get in their way. I think something that definitely lends to our ads being slightly less obtrusive is our continuing efforts to make the ads more contextual. Ads that are not contextual would lead to distraction and obtrusion. We're going to be constantly updating how this works so that if we do show an ad, at the very least it will be in the right context.
  • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1Another note: Sorry. I would like to send many of you, especially those that gave excellent feedback and added to the conversation, a Viddler sticker! I'd send you all tshirts but we're beginning to run low. Tell you want, sign up to Viddler and I'll get you a shirt too! But I don't know how to send you all messages through Digg.com without becoming your friend, you approving, and me sending you a shout. So please - send me an email ( cdevroe [at] viddler.com ) with your address and I will see what I can get out to all of you. Thanks again!!
  • johnleeke, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1"Any credit for being able to turn this on/off?"

    No credit, unless you make seeing the ads "opt in" instead of the current "opt out."

    • cdevroe, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1GAH! I knew someone would say this because it is exactly the way I wanted to handle ads originally. I wanted it to be opt-in for the producer and opt-in for the viewer. Unfortunately this would build the least amount of value for our advertisers and so a balance has to be struck. Having choice enables the viewers to browse all video on Viddler.com without ever seeing an ad, but they must first make the effort to not see the ads themselves.

      An example would be if you created a video, which had an ad on it, that went viral. You got a few million views and so for your efforts, and for your luck, you would like to see some return on your hard work. Only, the Viddler player recorded 2M hits and didn't show a single ad because the viewers were never given the choice to turn them on. So, as you see - reality in advertising sets in and although we're being as altruistic with this platform as possible - in order to build value to everyone involved, the opt-out option is at present the only option.

      Still no credit? Ok. We'll have to try harder. ;)
  • paul9290, on 11/15/2007, -0/+3Way to go Viddler! From Sleep.FM - The Social Alarm Clock
  • princessleah7x, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2This Idea is Brilliant! I am very happy that Viddler is becoming a more broad online community with many opportunities!
  • shedtroll, on 11/15/2007, -0/+4do we make money??? £_£
  • ijustine, on 11/16/2007, -0/+4Great work my little viddler friends ;)
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