Is the Web the New Hollywood?

The Internet is becoming a breeding ground for filmmakers and TV producers in both the indie-video and mainstream worlds

by Heather Green

When Apple (AAPL) Chief Executive Steve Jobs flashed a clip of the video blog Tiki Bar TV during the October launch of Apple's new video iPod, he turned the rollickingly sophomoric show into an instant online hit. Filmed in a 1950s-style bachelor pad, the bimonthly program is a farcical series of ad-libbed skits built around cocktails with names like the Volcano and the Red Oktober. Tiki Bar TV was launched on a lark about 10 months ago, and it attracts about 200,000 viewers, an audience the size of some established cable shows.

After years of hype, the Internet as TV is finally coming into its own. Never before has the opportunity been so great to take programming straight to the audience, circumventing the traditional film-industry production and distribution system. Until now, clever animated shorts or video clips that made a splash online have trod a well-worn path straight to TV, showing up on MTV, the Tonight Show, or even commercials (see BW, 1/30/06, "Three-Minute Moguls"). But not everyone considers online TV a stepping stone to Hollywood's bright lights.

Take Jeff Macpherson, the indie filmmaker in Vancouver who started Tiki Bar with his friends. He's getting plenty of attention from Hollywood types, but instead of trying to parlay Tiki Bar into a gig in big-budget TV or movies, Macpherson wants to raise money to create a series of similar shows for the Web. "This is the beginning of something big," Macpherson says. As people spend a growing portion of their lives online, some would-be movie moguls view Internet TV as an end in itself. Some are even finding that they can make money doing it.

UP TO SPEED.

Why now? The widespread adoption of high-speed Internet access is part of the reason. But just as important is the proliferation of affordable digital cameras and portable media players. Then there is the explosion of startups that provide publishing, advertising, and hosting services and software for video producers. And Google (GOOG), Yahoo! (YHOO), Microsoft (MSFT), Time Warner's (TWX) AOL and Apple's iTunes are all setting up online marketplaces where video producers can peddle videos free or for a fee.

Cutting-edge technology is also making it easier to bypass traditional video distribution. Video sharing services from companies including YouTube, Vimeo, and now MySpace make uploading and distributing video a snap. Technology such as RSS and services from Brightcove, TiVo, and others create distribution feeds to micro-audiences. "In the past people only had the chance to license their content to networks," says Jeremy Allaire, founder and CEO of Brightcove. "Now that's not the case."

Video blogs are a case in point. Over the past year, thousands of video versions of the increasingly popular Web logs, or blogs, have sprung up online. Those looking to make money from their efforts are turning to a series format. The Rocketboom video blog helped pioneer this model, dishing up a three-minute newscast spoof five days a week (see BW, 9/5/05, "Rocketboom's Powerful Lift-Off"). Now, Rocketboom has a daily audience of 130,000 viewers and is distributed via TiVo, which can now be used to watch Web videos on TV.

NETWORK NEWS.

Other series range from reports by techie blog Engadget to Carp Caviar, an eclectic variety of animation, archived footage, and cultural commentary. A standout is Ask a Ninja. After watching the success of Tiki Bar and Rocketboom, Kent Nichols and Douglas Sarine turned the information they had gathered about Ninjas for an animation project into Ask a Ninja.

Launched after Thanksgiving, the series features a black-clad Ninja who provides tongue-in-cheek responses to viewers' questions about Ninja lore.