CBS Launches "EyeLab" for Short-Form Promotional Video

--356 Local TV and Radio Stations Join CBS Interactive Audience Network

US broadcast network, CBS, has announced the launch of "EyeLab," an editing studio dedicated to creating promotional short-form video content, based on CBS's programming, for distribution across new media platforms. According to the broadcaster, the short-form mash-up content will be tied to programming from CBS News, Sports, Entertainment, Late Night and Daytime, as well as from CSTV and Showtime, and will be produced not only by CBS producers and by professional online content editors, but also by viewers. Eyelab mash-ups will be distributed across the CBS Audience Network (for more on the latter, see below), as well as on CBS.com and CBS Mobile.

According to CBS, the EyeLab concept was built on research that shows that short-form clips are among the most-viewed videos on the Web. The broadcaster says that it expects the studio will generate thousands of original clips, promoting its programs. "Recognizing that short-form content is what our viewers want online, we're committed to bringing CBS fans short, easy-to-digest clips which they can take and mash up, rework, re-edit and, no doubt, inspire us with their creativity," Anthony E. Zuiker, executive producer and creator of the "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" franchise, said in a prepared statement. "Using the Web as a direct engagement platform with those who care the most about the show is a perfect way to bring the TV experience online and, in turn, to learn from fans." Added George Schweitzer, president of CBS marketing (note: for an in-depth interview with Schweitzer, see [itvt] Issue 7.07): "EyeLab will allow our marketing and production team to tap into a vast new pool of creative resources while attracting new eyeballs to our TV content in a format that works on interactive platforms. Online video is not just about TV shows as we know them and EyeLab content is not for TV. We can harness the passion and creativity of our shows' biggest fans, and also learn a lot about their interests and talents." And added Patrick Keane, chief marketing officer of CBS Interactive: "We are well aware that the Internet is the world's best laboratory and we want to encourage our loyal and passionate fans to lend their creative ideas and talents in a way that makes CBS content their own. By inviting fans to participate, we expect to grow our already vast content slate tremendously. CBS was ahead in massive, open distribution and this represents the next step catering content better for our users based on what we're learning about them. The creation of EyeLab also underscores another key difference in the interactive platforms, which is the ability to handle and program for inverse scarcity. EyeLab can't feed the Audience Network, CBS.com or CBS Mobile too much content."

In other CBS news:

• The broadcaster says that 356 local television and radio station Web sites--including the sites of 29 CBS-owned-and-operated TV stations--have joined the CBS Interactive Audience Network. (Note: the latter is an initiative that was announced in April and that sees CBS offering a range of clips and programming on the Internet free-of-charge through multiple partner Web sites. Distribution partners that had signed on when the service was first announce included AOL, Microsoft, CNET, Comcast, Joost, Bebo, Brightcove, Netvibes, Sling Media and Veoh. In May, CBS announced that it was partnering with a number of community-oriented Web sites and social application providers--including Automattic, Clearspring, DAVE Networks, Goowy Media, meebo, MeeVee, Musestorm, Ning, RockYou, Slide, VideoEgg, Voxant and vSocial--in order to allow end-users to incorporate CBS Audience Network clips into their blogs, wikis, widgets and community pages--see [itvt] Issue 7.32 Part 3.) In addition to allowing those sites to offer full-length episodes of CBS primetime, late-night and sports programs, the deal will enable them to use the Audience Network to distribute their own content. "Our collaboration with CBS Interactive represents another great leap forward in the evolution and continued growth of our TV stations' digital media initiatives," Jonathan Leess, digital media group president and general manager of CBS Television Stations, said in a prepared statement. "The expanded integration of CBS Entertainment, News and Sports video content into our sites and, ultimately, the sharing of hundreds of thousands of locally produced, on-demand news clips from our award-winning, local newsrooms, truly makes this a win-win partnership."
• The broadcaster says that the consumption of video streams at CBSSports.com has more than doubled year-over-year (August 2006 vs. August 2007). "Obviously we're well past the point of online video being a novelty in this business; it's clearly now something that our consumers want to view on a daily basis," Jason Kint, general manager of CBSSports.com, said in a prepared statement. "The original video we're producing is not only a must-see for users, such as our fantasy players, but has also become an ideal vehicle for many of our advertisers to deliver their brand." Broadband video programs on CBSSports.com this fall include "Toyota Daily Sports Update," the fantasy football-themed shows, "Who's Hot, Who's Not" and "Start 'em and Sit 'em," and a raft of NFL-themed shows.

Originally Published: October 12, 2007 in [itvt] Issue 7.39 Part 3A

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