Hasta La Gadget!

YouTube allows certain users to earn revenue from advertisements displayed on their videos, while others upload videos simply for the joy of it. What neither of those two types of users are happy about is the revelation that Nintendo will acquire all revenue proceeds earned by those users’ videos featuring games by the company. Nintendo’s response is a tad passive aggressive, suggesting that users have to deal with it or else their ability to upload the videos will be blocked entirely.

You’ve likely seen the type of YouTube videos being referenced – they’re uploaded by gamers who brag about their skills, showcasing headshots or coin counts or any other such achievements worth their weight in digital praise. Others are of the more utilitarian variety, featuring step-by-step visual walkthroughs of hard-to-beat missions, as well as walkthroughs of complete levels from the game’s beginning to end.

The sticking point in the issue is that each video is displaying the video game maker’s intellectual property, and for that reason the company can have the content pulled. Rather than take that route, Nintendo has decided to fill its coffers, so to speak, with their customer’s content by reaping the advertisement revenue. Said the company, “We continually want our fans to enjoy sharing Nintendo content on YouTube. That is why, unlike other entertainment companies, we have chosen not to block people using our intellectual property.”

This will be achieved by targeting videos that meet certain requirements, such as displaying Nintendo game footage, as well as the duration that footage is visible on the video. Such videos will have advertisements placed either at the beginning of the content, somewhere in the middle, or at the end, depending on the video. Those proceeds will go to Nintendo, and the content creator’s ability to garner ad revenue is eliminated.

As you might imagine, the backlash over this has been large, with many stating they will no longer upload content of Nintendo games – some going so far as to say they’ll stop playing them entirely – until the issue is sorted and Nintendo stops leeching off their content. One such gamer that will be affected is Zack Scott, who said on his Facebook that unlike movies and TV shows, every game play is unique, and for this reason Nintendo is in the wrong. Viewers aren’t watching to see Nintendo’s content, but rather the means by which to beat a mission and to hear commentary on the game.

SOURCE: BBC News

Nintendo to nab ad revenue from YouTube users’ gaming videos is written by Brittany Hillen & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Windows Phone has always been left out of the mobile wars, with iOS and Android mainly taking center stage and fighting in the ring. However, Microsoft is using that to their advantage with their latest Windows Phone television ad. The ad pokes fun at the constant iOS vs. Android war by basically saying that you don’t need to fight with other users if you’re using Windows Phone.

The ad takes place at a wedding, where everyone in the audience naturally pops out their smartphones (and tablets, in one instance) to take a picture of the moment. However, this leads to name-calling and sarcastic taunts to other guests. Obviously, an all-out fight ensues as people argue over what the better mobile platform is, while Windows Phone users casually stand there using their Nokia Lumia 920 devices.

Microsoft feeds off of the oft-forgotten mobile platform in the mobile wars, and uses that to their advantage, touting that if you have a Windows Phone device, there’s no need to argue over which mobile platform is the best, because Microsoft argues that you have the best in your hand in the first place.

It seems that more and more companies are aiming their sights at competitors and downplaying the features on these devices rather than market their own products and demo some of the features on their own smartphones and tablets. We get that Microsoft thinks they’re not included in the mobile wars because they’re already the best, but they fail to really list why they’re the best.

Windows Phone ad pokes fun at iOS vs. Android war is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Facebook is gearing up to launch video ads on its network come this summer. The ads are expected to arrive in June or July, and Ad Age reports that there will be 4 slots, each slot costing around $1 million daily for advertisers to use. While Facebook has yet to decide on what video ad format it wants to use, sources have told Ad Age that Facebook has conferred with 3 executives about the new product.

Facebook will make these video ads targeted towards specific users. There is a category for women over 30, women under 30, men over 30, and men under 30. Each ad will be about 15 seconds long, and users will only see a maximum of 3 ads per day. The ads will be on auto-play mode, and will either cover the entirety of the user’s Facebook page, be smaller ads located on a corner of your Facebook feed, or be something else entirely. The video ads will also be implemented onto Facebook Mobile.

If Facebook is successful in getting advertisers to pay the elaborate fee, it can generate at least $120 million a month and $1.44 billion a year. It’s speculated that Facebook wants to target those in the TV industry who have a huge budget for advertising. One executive who was briefed on the new product, however, says that the current price tag will most likely deter many advertisers, and would most likely spark outrage among Facebook’s users.

Launching video ad units on its social network, while may generate a massive amount of revenue for Facebook, will not be well-received by its users. Facebook users want to quickly get into their Facebook feed, check out any new status updates, message a few friends, and get out. Having to close out of Facebook’s video ads, or worse, be required to sit through a 15 second ad will anger a lot of people. But as we know, Facebook’s main goal is to generate as much revenue as possible.

[via Ad Age]

Facebook wants advertisers to pay $1m a day to display their video ads is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

It looks like eBay is looking to join Google, Facebook, and Amazon in bringing your customer data to advertisers. Stephen Howard-Sarin, eBay’s Head of Digital Display in North America, stated at AdExchanger’s Programmatic I/O conference that eBay is “now commercializing that capability for the benefit of other marketers who want to reach shoppers.”

Howard-Sarin addresses concerns of eBay shoppers when he says that they expect eBay not to reveal to anyone “who they are”, but he also says that that doesn’t necessarily mean that eBay can’t, for example, “create segments of shoe shoppers” and let marketers target their advertisements towards them. He says that ads will always be relevant to what you’ve purchased, like a large telecommunications company launching targeted ads to people who’ve purchased a phone in the last 2-3 years.

On the bright side, eBay will act as the median between marketers and your data. Meaning, marketers will not be granted full access to all of your data so that they can use it and abuse it. Howard-Sarin said, “If you’re an agency and it complicates your life because we’ve got a unique pool of data that you don’t have, tough.”

So what this means is more ads are heading your way, but at least they will be relevant. It could also spell dangers for your wallet. eBay is trying to stay up-to-speed with its main e-commerce competitor, Amazon. By giving marketers access to your user data, it will be able to accumulate high premiums from its advertising fees. Like eBay, Facebook is also looking to step up its marketing game.

[via AdWeek]

eBay is now sharing your data with marketers is written by Brian Sin & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

When Apple unveiled Final Cut Pro X back in 2011, the response was less than stellar. Many video editors hated the new layout, and they blasted Apple for turning the professional-grade video editing software into basically a version of iMovie on steroids. However, the company is looking to win their hearts back with a new marketing campaign.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Apple is launching a new marketing campaign that is intended to try and win back some of the professional users who have abandoned Final Cut Pro X, and either went back to Final Cut Pro 7 or switched to a different video editing software entirely. The campaign will also be aimed at getting skeptical users on board with the new video editor.

Apple handled the criticism to Final Cut Pro X with great aplomb, giving users who bought the software a refund if they didn’t like it, and providing new users with free trials before they had to decide whether or not to buy. Many users have noted that Apple dumbed down the video editing software in order to cater towards larger audiences.

Apple will be posting confessional-type stories on its website, two of which will feature Tsui Hark, one of the biggest names in Hong Kong cinema, and TV Azteca, who produces thousands of telenovela episodes each year. It’s not said when exactly the campaign will go live, but it should be fairly soon.

[via Los Angeles Times]

Apple Final Cut Pro X marketing campaign looks to win back video editors is written by Craig Lloyd & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.