A friend of mine has just told me about a company that will launch on Oct. 22. It's called Firebrand and you can find out a smidge more at their virtually content-free site, www.firebrandtv.com. Firebrand has a heavy-duty heritage so they're probably worth watching. It's co-founded by John Lack, one of the co-creators of MTV and is backed by Microsoft, NBC Universal and Nielsen, the parent company of Adweek magazine.
The idea is to "program spots like a DJ spins music in a club" and to let Gen Y and Millennial consumers build their own commercial playlists. It also gives advertisers and their agencies the chance to gauge how their spots are received. Maybe this marks a trend/movement of commercials that act more as entertainment than mere propagators of logos, over-acting and copy points. Maybe some advertiser/agency will wake up and do something that's not confined by a mere 30 seconds.
One caveat. The info above was gleaned from Firebrand's press-release, so we might have to sift through the hype. But keep watching and keep me updated. Especially if you're a gen Y/millennial.
wow it already has 530 members on facebook!
ReplyDeletebut it's not that busy - the comments and such seem to all come from them.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=5967126396
from the groups about section:
"Introducing Firebrand! The first network that’s turning the commercial break into a commercial destination. You are no longer the commercial target. You target the commercials. Choose what brands you interact with, choose how you interact with them. Firebrand. Weeknights at 11 PM ET (ION Television, Check your local listings) Web (Firebrandtv.com) and Mobile. "