Well we’re clearly in the bubble burst of online-video sites. Stage6 shut down, and Revver was sold. Who’s next?
Category Archives: Revver
Online-Video Site, Revver, Completes Fire Sale
I was one of the most active Revver creators soon after the video site launched two years ago (see “Getting Rich on Revver“), and paved the way for ad-revenue sharing with creators. This very blog was an offshoot of an unofficial Revver blog called Revverberation.
So I’m saddened to see that Revver sold (according to NewTeeVee) for under $5 million to LiveUniverse (if I had any money to invest I would certainly have put it into Revver in 2005 before taking a risk with popular but revenue-lite YouTube). Revver, according to NewTeevee’s Liz Gannes, had raised $12.7 million from Comcast, Turner, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Bessemer Venture Partners, Draper Richards and William Randolph Hearst III. In a report earlier this month, CNET News.com cited sources who said the beleaguered Revver was asking for between $300,000 and $500,000 and the assumption of the company’s debt, which the sources said was in the $1 million range.
Founded by Brad Greenspan (who founded MySpace), LiveUniverse operates multiple sites, including video-sharing service LiveVideo. CNET reports that ” Revver’s staff, which is half the size it was in 2006, was ecstatic to hear that the company was saved and that they would not be broken up or moved, according to two Revver employees.” No official word from Revver, and the Revver blog (which has been quiet for days) hasn’t yet mentioned the firesale.
It was only a matter of time before Revver sold, because it has struggled as a third-tier video site with a compelling model but little traffic. I made $2600 on my videos, but that number has been largely flat as distribution was minimal and ad-premiums went from profitable end-frame ads to bottom-feeder text ads. Payments have been issued late (see Revver Forum post) and rumors floated that Revver was paying creators on credit-card debt.
So the good news, dear Revver employees, is you still have a job for now. The bad news is that I’m not sure LiveUniverse is much more than an ad network, and a equally struggling site called LiveVideo (which has been on the decline according to Alexa stats).
Buy “Best of Nalts” Video Shorts on High Definition DVD
Per my post in December, I finally received and approved my proof of the “Best of Nalts: Volume 1” DVD. So now you can buy 71 minutes of Nalts videos (with 29 videos) on CreateSpace.com by clicking here.
I have nearly “comedic” 600 videos online for free, but I think these are the best ones (although a few of you pointed out a few that need to be high on the list for volume two). I avoided videos that were too YouTube centric like Renetto shaving my head, or other inside jokes. So most of these are family-friendly and don’t require any context to appreciate.
So buy your copy now for the low, low price of $19.94. Yey. My kids and their friends just gathered around to watch the proof DVD tonight, and it’s frightening how clear the quality is since most of them are high definition… especially when you’re used to seeing them in horribly compressed format on YouTube. You can actually read little things in the background, so I’m sure I’ve inadvertently left a credit card number visible. But unless I sell about 30,000 of these DVDs (and something tells me I’m lucky if I sell 50), those credit card numbers won’t be much worth to you.
To see the full list of videos, click “more” below. To see the sleeve in higher resolution, click the image on the right.
Click here to buy one for $19.94. Click here to watch ’em for free in low resolution and with annoying ads. 🙂
P.S. I priced mine exactly one penny below HappySlip‘s, and I make big $6.02 per copy sold.
Continue reading Buy “Best of Nalts” Video Shorts on High Definition DVD
“How to Become Popular on YouTube (Without Any Talent)” – A Free eBook
Thank you, dear readers, for your help finalizing this version 1.5 of “How to Become Popular on YouTube Without Any Talent.” Honestly, if I look at this document another moment I’m going to boot. If you’re looking for my real book, “Beyond Viral,” published by Wiley & Sons in 2010, please click here.
(Warning- clicking the image to the right will cause you to download the book, which is annoying but probably what most people expect).
This post marks the official release of the book. You can download it (for free) by clicking this link, which will open the 30-page PDF: “How to Become Popular on YouTube (Without Any Talent), version 1.5” by Kevin Nalts, WillVideoForFood.com. If you post the PDF on your own blog or website, please keep that title, and my name and URL. You might want to list this post’s permalink, since it will point to future downloadable versions.
While you’re waiting for Adobe to open (insert “car rusting” joke here), I hope you’ll RSS this blog so we can keep each other current. If you’re a YouTuber and haven’t subscribed to my videos, visit YouTube.com/Nalts, then select the orange button labled “subscribe.” Okay- enough self promotion for one day. I’m going to take a nap.
Here’s the book on Skribd for easy access.
Here’s a free 2-page synopsis of my book, “The Prophet of Online Video.” If you want to use this outline and write your own book, go ahead. I’m so not writing for a while.
Sneak Preview: “How to Become Popular on YouTube Without Any Talent” (Free eBook)
[NOTE- THIS POST IS OLD. FOR THE MOST RECENT VERSION OF THE BOOK, SEE THIS POST]
On Friday I’m releasing a free eBook titled “How to Become Popular on YouTube Without Any Talent.” I won’t make any money for each copy downloaded, but I’ll make it up in volume.
Below is a draft that still needs some fine tuning, but I’d appreciate some feedback from some of you core WVFF readers. Here it is as a PDF (version 1.3, which includes some of your edits on 01/03/08): How to Become Popular on YouTube Without Any Talent
If you’re a blogger, I know I can’t stop you from posting this, but it would be great if you could wait until the Friday (January 4). Unless you’re some big-ass blog like TechCrunch. Then you can do whatever the heck you want. The several days I spent on this would be time well spent if it resulted in an inbound link from a big ass blog (BAB). Up until now, TechCrunch has only given the black-hatted viral marketers a spotlight. 😉
That said, I’m kinda hoping to “soft launch” it to the WillVideoForFood regulars before it’s officially released. I’m somewhat anxious about releasing something via pdf, and knowing I don’t have the ability to fix some horrible mistake that’s bound to be lurking within.
Thanks!
PS Here’s a synopsis of my forthcoming “The Prophet (Profit) of Online Video: Book synopsis,” which is being written to help marketers, agencies and creators capitalize on the growing field of online video.
Revver 3.0 Launches With “Quilty”
Two years ago I discovered Revver (the pioneer of creator ad-sharing via video), and she’s growing up. Here’s a Revver blog announcing the new Revver, which includes the ability of viewers to finally comment.
Revver has always suffered from low views relative to larger sites, and the new “Quilty” (see Revver homepage) addresses that. It’s an addictive-like series of thumbnails that rotate and provide instant access to quality content. Not sure if this is editorial or viewer populated, but I assume a blend.
The gulf between sites like Revver and the market leader (YouTube) is widening despite the better quality/crap ratio on Revver. And, until recently, Revver was dense with Adsense and “house” advertisements, which makes me worry about its longevity.
But Revver’s model is unique, the technology is innovative and it has a quirky, creator-friendly soul. And a monkey. Don’t underestimate the monkey.
Watch Free Episodes of The Office
Thanks to a banner on Revver, I discovered that you can watch free full episodes of The Office at NBC.com. This is a big step forward for traditional media, and hopefully the studios compensate writers for this. Parenthetically, I still haven’t heard from The Office about my pitch to be in one of the shows. Even my stalking the cast in Scranton didn’t do it.
2 Year Anniversary of Online Videos
Almost every interview I do, someone asks how I got started in online video. The reality is that I’ve been making short videos since I was in highschool, and most of them are still sitting in the basement on deteriating VHS tapes. Except Attack of the Killer Slinky.
But online video for me started almost exactly two years ago today. I walked into the dark room of designers and programmers that worked with me in Johnson & Johnson’s global pharmaceutical web group (or whatever the heck our name was at that time). “Does anyone know where I can upload my videos and share in the ad revenue,” I asked. Derrick said YouTube was pretty popular, but it didn’t share ad revenue. Pinacki gave me a strange look and then farted. (Later I would cast them in Burger King Outsources, and only then did they take any interest in my hobby).
Later in December I picked up this copy of PCMagazine and discovered Revver. Finally on December 11 I uploaded “Baby Topples Over” (which was an older video) to test Revver. It wasn’t until more than a month later that I reluctantly decided to post on YouTube (and for the remaining 9 months my videos were getting 20-50 views max on YouTube).
I suppose I’ve got well more than 600 videos up if you include the 558 on YouTube and whatever ones I never bothered posting to YouTube (but are on Revver). If you counted my alternative channels and collaboration videos I’d guess we’re closer to 800. About one every other day for two years… what if I had exercised instead?
Some day I’ll sort out the best since the vast majority are “throw aways” or inside jokes.
One of Most Popular YouTubers (HappySlip) Sells DVD Collection
HappySlip, the 5th most subscribed YouTuber, is selling her videos via DVD. To give you an idea of the affinity between the former New Yorker and her fans, I’ll remind you of when I broke into her apartment and stole her stapler. I later auctioned it on eBay and it raised more than $850 for an animal charity.
One of the nice things about MOST of the online-video channels is that they do not require exclusivity arrangements (and don’t think many didn’t try). So that means Christine can monetize her videos via DVD, or sell the content upstream to mobile and television. And why do I have a feeling that’s coming soon?
The embedded video above is her musical promo.
Creating HyperVideo: Hyperlinks Over Your Video With Asterpix
Remember when hypertext was all the rage? Then hypervideo was going to allow Seinfeld viewers to click on the phone and buy one?
Asterpix has a somewhat new service that allows you to rip a video from YouTube or other sites, and then drag hyperlinks over the images. Your video, which would now be served via Asterpix (but can be embedded on your own site) can have small dotted-line squares that appear temporarily over a particular image. If your viewer “mouses over” the square, they can read a short description, see tags, and follow a hyper link.
This has been discussed for years, but I haven’t, until now, seen it deployed as a free and easy-to-use tool. I learned about this from Scobleizer, a braniac that called it the “coolest thing I’ve seen in a while.” The Asterpix’s CEO writes about hypervideo in this 3-post blog.
Why would you want to do this? It gives the viewer the ability to interact or learn more about specific objects or people in the video. Now the marketer can promote the product that is otherwise resigned to a preroll or subtle product placement. Your viewer can also learn more about a video’s actor/actress or object (or actress that is an object).
In my own experimental demonstration, I brought my YouTube video (Poor Man’s GPS) into Asterpix and dropped a few links over parts of the image (only in the first minute). This video is one of my sponsored videos for GPSManiac, so I wanted to see how I could introduce the client more visibly. It took about 15 minutes for me to figure it out, but that’s probably because Patrick was talking to me the whole time.
What I Liked:
- Asterprix is simple and doesn’t require me to upload a video to Asterpix because it rips it from YouTube.
- Putting in the hyperlinks is fairly easy.
- It’s free, and the name is cool (based off “asterix”)
What Needs Work
- It was hard for me to understand how to turn the dotted-line squares OFF. I suppose they’re duration based, but maybe they’re based on image recognition. In any event, the user absolutely has to control the duration because even the subtle dotted-line square is obstrusive if it sticks around too long. And in some cases, my image has changed, and the boxes are looming over something else.
- The dotted-line square is subtle, but I’d probably want to tone it down further. I know some of my viewers are irritated by even the subtle YouTube InVideo ads that only occupy 20% of the screen for around 15 seconds. So I can imagine they’d be really annoyed if white boxes are appearing all over the video.
- There’s a potential copyright problem with the business model. I don’t prove I own the clip, so I can do this to anyone’s video. Maybe in my sign-up I promised not to do that (but who reads those things?).
Where It Will Work & Won’t
- It’s not a tool people can use on major online-video sites (like YouTube) because, like any dynamic ad, it gets stripped away. I remember trying desperately to upload my Revver-tagged ads to YouTube. Kinda cute in retrospect.
- This does have some nice application for the video “long tail” (although a few sites dominate in online video, the bulk of viewing occurs in fragmented areas all over the web). There will be a lot of content that would benefit from a way for viewers to dig more deeply into a video.
- It has a lot of potential creative applications. An instructional video could have a way a viewer can follow a side-bar for more information. I’m surprised Asterpix doesn’t use its own technology to demonstrate how to use it. There are some fairly weak demos, and the “how to use” section is pure text and images.
I am curious to see how the company monetizes this tool. Does it charge a flat or recurring fee for advanced functionality? Does it try to squeeze yet another ad into the video and feed itself via ads (which may repel people)?