From left to right: David Fox of David Fox & Associates; Charlie Maday, svp Historical Programming at Military History Channel; William Spencer Reilly, evp Creative Strategies, Productions & Partnership of Odyssey Networks; and Kenneth Cavander, consulting producer. Through ZillionTV, viewers have a choice of watching TV programs or movies with or without ads. Those choosing to watch programs with ads receive those programs for free, while those declining to view ads are charged a fee. One of the key advantages of AVoD is that it precludes fast-forwarding, Berman noted. In the future, ZillionTV will incorporate branded destinations, which will afford consumers access to videos of goods and services from such brands as MillerCoors, a ZillionTV sponsor. These destinations will also allow consumers to watch TV shows or movies sponsored by such brands, and directly purchase products from them. ZillionTV offers TV content providers a share of ad revenue and a key brand building opportunity. Berman believes his service offers special business opportunities for content providers that aren’t in the “top tier,” (including original, local, and national content providers) to reach their audiences in new ways, augment their existing revenue, and develop new means of monetizing their business through ZillionTV’s branded destinations. Currently, ZillionTV has over 60 content providers. Its “Tier 1” content providers include 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures, NBC Universal, Warner Brothers, Walt Disney, Paramount, and Lionsgate. ZillionTV’s content includes new and classic TV shows, movies, sports, and music. ZillionTV’s business model is variegated, drawing on eight revenue streams, including those from advertising, video on demand, commerce, polling, branded destinations, and data. A limited market rollout of ZillionTV began in mid-September. Where possible, the service has been introduced through telco partners. Otherwise, the service has been directly introduced to consumers. Berman declined to disclose which markets ZillionTV has entered or the number of viewers the service reaches. At the same time, ZillionTV has had discussions with consumer electronics manufacturers to embed the service as an application in their products, which would include set-top boxes, DVD players, and Blu-Ray players. Berman emphasizes that ZillionTV is proceeding carefully and testing the waters in order to get the service right. He projects that the service will go nationwide in mid2010, and that an international launch of the service will likely be announced by that time as well. Berman readily admits ZillionTV “needs to prove that certain aspects of our business work,” and that the service won’t succeed overnight. (By Michael Mascioni ) Odyssey’s Film Screens at Fest Late last October, Odyssey Networks hosted a screening of Florence Nightingale at the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival. The film was the highest-rated single drama in primetime on BBC-1 in 2008. Screening guests included the film’s writer and director, Norman Stone, along with consulting producer Kenneth Cavander. Florence Nightingale is an Odyssey Networks/BBC co-production in association with CTVC and 8th Day, produced by 1A Productions in association with Lightworks Producing Group. JA N U A R Y 2 0 1 0 MARK YOURCALENDAR ALL DISCOP™ EVENTS ARE ORGANIZED BY www.basiclead.com www.discop.com discop@basiclead.com tel paris + 33 1 42 29 32 24 tel los angeles + 1 323 782 13 00 DISCOP AFRICA 3 DAKAR24-26 FEBRUARY 2010 DISCOP EAST 18 BUDAPEST22-25 JUNE 2010 DISCOP AFRICA 4 NAIROBI1-3 SEPTEMBER 2010 DISCOP MIDDLE EAST 1 ISTANBUL14-16 MARCH 2011 DISCOP EAST 19 BUDAPEST21-24 JUNE 2011 (Continued from Page 4) Staff Meetings Judged Useless According to a survey by the Menlo Park, California-based OfficeTeam, 28 percent of company executives suggested that internal staff meetings are unnecessary. Another 46 percent stated that there would be no change in productivity if they were eliminated.
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