May 2002
EI Smart Paper
Streaming Media
Sponsored by Windows Media
Defining the next wave of INTERACTIVE MARKETING
• Contents
• Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
• Streaming Media at a Glance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
• What Is Streaming Media? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
• Who’s Streaming? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
• How Can Advertisers and Marketers Use Streaming Media? . . . . . . 6
• Industry Hurdles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
• Practical Tips from Industry Insiders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
• Additional Resources/Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
• Technology Comparison Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 1
• Introduction
When Victoria’s Secret streamed a fashion show online in 1999, a lot of people got
excited. Scantily clad models strutting down a runway in their underwear may have
contributed to some of the fervor. However, for streaming media proponents, the
significance of the event had little to do with Tyra Banks in lingerie and everything to do
with the 1.5 million people who flocked to the net to stream the webcast.
For marketers, the question was, “How can we capture this audience?”
Since then, “streamies,” the people who regularly access streaming media, have been
touted by analysts as a highly desirable demographic. Marketers are responding.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 2
• Streaming Media at a Glance
What is Streaming Media?
• Streaming media is audio and video broadcast via the Internet. It is compressed
and transmitted in a steady stream, usually through a plug-in player or Java-
based technology.
Who’s Streaming?
• People with broadband Internet connections are more likely to be engaging in
streaming media, although users with slower modem connections can also enjoy
a quality streaming media experience.
• According to Arbitron/Edison Media Research, approximately 35 percent of
Americans age 12 and older have accessed streaming audio or video online.
• Forty-nine percent of “streamies” live in homes with an annual income of $50K
and above.
What Can Advertisers Do with Streaming Media?
• Re-purpose TV spots to stream online
• Stream videos such as movie trailers in skyscraper or banner ads
• Create entertaining and viral brand experiences
• Stream live, sponsored events
• Target niche audiences through Internet radio ads
• Wrap branding around streaming content
Tips from Insiders
• A positive user experience starts with good creative.
• Give webcasting a home in your agency.
What’s the ROI?
• The Economist sent a streaming video email message, garnering 1,000 new trial
subscriptions and a customer acquisition cost reduction of 52 percent.
• Cingular Wireless streamed audio ads on Internet radio networks, increasing
brand awareness by 29 percent.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 3
• What Is Streaming Media?
Streaming media is not just for voyeurs or fashionistas. It’s for news hounds and music
buffs, sports fanatics and business executives. In other words, if it’s got audio or video
components or both, it can be streamed online.
Streaming media is audio and video broadcast via the Internet. Streaming media
consists of compressed audio and video that is stored on a server and transmitted to the
user continuously, in a steady stream. Unlike the majority of content experienced on the
Web, streaming media does not require a complete download before it can be
accessed. That’s because it is served to the user incrementally rather than in one large
file. While the user is watching and listening to the initial streaming video and audio data,
subsequent data are being fed to the user’s computer, either through a plug-in player
like Microsoft’s Windows Media Player, Apple’s QuickTime or RealNetworks’ RealOne
Player, or through a Java-based system.
Bandwidth is also a major factor when it comes to accessing streaming media. The more
bandwidth, or space through which the streaming data can be passed, the higher
quality the viewing and listening experience will be. Therefore, people with fast Internet
connections including DSL, cable, T1 and T3 connections are more likely to be engaging
in streaming media. Still, users with slower modem connections can also enjoy a quality
streaming media experience.
What’s keeping marketers from integrating streaming audio and video into their media
plans? Steve Goldberg, president and CEO of Hiwire, a streaming ad management firm,
puts it bluntly: “Only timidity stands between our ability to capture this opportunity and
failure.”
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 4
• Who’s Streaming?
You’ve decided to run a video or audio-enhanced ad on the Web, but how many
people will be exposed to it? Will they be the right people?
Published in February, 2002, the eighth report in a series conducted by Arbitron/Edison
Media Research, Internet VIII: Advertising vs. Subscription - Which Streaming Model Will
Win? charts the behavior of multimedia-mad streamies. It suggests that streamies are not
only an attractive demographic, but a growing one.
According to the report, approximately 80 million Americans age 12 and older (35
percent) have accessed streaming audio or video online. Just two years ago, that
number was at 24 percent. And the divisions among age groups is surprisingly balanced.
Plus, streamies have lots of purchasing power. Of the forty million Americans 12 and older
who have streamed online in a typical month, 49 percent live in homes with an annual
income of $50K and above.
The number of broadband users who access streaming audio and video content is
nearly double the number of streamies with dial-up connections, but broadband access
numbers are rising dramatically. From January of 2001 to January of 2002, the number of
Americans with at-home broadband connections has soared from 15 million to 27 million
(that’s one in five). Don’t forget: streaming ads are also a great way to reach people in
the workplace where they’re bound to have high-speed connections. According to Bill
Rose, vice president and general manager, Arbitron Webcast Services, “They spend
more time online…just before they make their major purchases of the day, in an
environment where they’re exposed to less of the other major media.”
Streaming radio is moving by leaps and bounds as well. As reported in April 2002, total
time spent listening to stations in MeasureCast, Inc.’s Internet Radio Listening Index
jumped an astonishing 510 percent since January 2001.
Perhaps more compelling, streamies prefer streaming audio and video ads over banner
ads by a ratio of two to one, according to Rose.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 5
• How Can Advertisers and Marketers Use Streaming Media?
It’s clear that streaming media’s audience is growing, as are the ways in which marketers
can reach that audience through streaming media.
Advertisers are beginning to understand the online advertising unit as an extension of
something they’ve known for more than 50 years: the TV spot. If there’s a commercial in
the can, it can be extended online for not much more money; if there isn’t, both creative
and distribution fees can be quite a bit less expensive for streaming online than television
related costs.
That’s just one way of employing streaming media for marketing purposes. Movie makers
reinforce television commercials by streaming trailers in skyscraper or banner ads using
technologies like Klipmart’s Klip-ads. Packaged goods companies create entertaining
and viral brand experiences with Macromedia Flash and streaming audio that get
viewers excited enough to email friends with the news. Business-to-business firms stream
keynote speaker presentations. Advertisers target niche audiences through an
incremental series of Internet radio ads known as “session ads.” Others wrap branding
around streaming content, like the 3-5 minute videos served by bThere featuring models
getting tipsy at holiday parties or Iggy Pop primping for a photo shoot. Essentially, the
possibilities are limited only to the imagination.
“Streaming definitely can be used as a branding medium” concludes Audrey Fleisher,
creative director at Ogilvy Interactive. “Part of what we’re trying to get out of it is a
certain wow experience for the user. You get your information out there in a way that
feels ultimately more satisfying than it would be if it wasn’t in that format.”
Soda Giant Case Study: Fizzy Lifting ROI
When one of the world's three largest soft drink makers debuted a new branding
campaign, that wow of streaming was experienced not only by consumers, but by the
advertiser when the results came in. The company aimed to reach as many consumers
as possible within the first two weeks of the launch, so in addition to the traditional
advertising mix of TV, print and radio, they decided to leverage their new broadcast
creative online through streaming.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 6
EyeWonder's Eyemedia technology was used to convert existing broadcast creative to
online ads that require no plug-in or download to view. Within a two week period,
EyeWonder served over 15 million pop-up and banner ad impressions across 11 sites,
including AOL, RealNetworks.com and TVguide.com. The banner units served the video
and audio as soon as the banner loaded and enabled consumers to mute, pause,
expand or replay the :30 spot.
The result? Well, imagine getting consumers to want to view your ad more than once.
As many as 4.9 percent of the users chose to the see the ad again by hitting the replay
button. Plus, over 2 percent elected to expand the video, while less than 1 percent
opted out of the experience. The Pop-up units also performed well, delivering as high as
an 8 percent replay rate. In the end, across all units, over 85 percent of users who were
served the ad watched the entire spot.
Scotts Case Study: It’s Easy Streaming Green
Of course, not every advertiser’s got an enormous ad budget or snazzy TV spot at their
disposal. Lawn and garden product company, Scotts, proved that a practical,
educational message can also make for a strong brand communication.
Scotts worked with streaming video content provider, VastVideo to convert Scotts’ video
content into “Video Quick Tips” just in time for peak planting season. The brief video
descriptions for products such as Miracle-Gro and Starter Fertilizer ran about a minute
each and can still be found on the Scotts website today. Scotts promoted the mini video
tutorials through personalized emails, sent to its existing opt-in email database of
subscribers.
Thanks to the Video Quick Tips, Scotts harvested an abundant crop of interested
streamers. All in all, ten percent of unique visitors to the company’s site viewed video
clips, and Scotts is currently working on extending its streaming video content to reseller
sites.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 7
The Economist Case Study: Streaming the World Over
Another advertiser that’s appreciated by information-hungry folks across the globe, The
Economist, has achieved streaming success. This time, the video stream found its way
into the email message itself.
Increased printing and postal fees drove the current events publication to forsake
expensive direct mail for email. Using MindArrow's RadicalMail platform, it incorporated
streaming video and a direct response subscription form directly within an email
message, rather than relying on the user to click-through to the company’s site.
The video message, narrated by a former prison mate of Nelson Mandela, attracted the
attention of the email’s 600,000 opt-in recipients, prompting 1,000 new trial subscriptions
which were submitted through the email’s secure application form. All in all, the
campaign reduced The Economist’s customer acquisition cost by 52 percent.
Streaming Solutions for the Typical Advertiser: No Content? No Problem.
Sure, developing streaming advertorial content has its merits, particularly when it comes
to branding campaigns. However, advertisers can also run ads that accompany
streaming media in the same way they run commercials alongside television
programming.
Streaming audio and video content sites offer an array of advertising opportunities. On
WindowsMedia.com, video ads stream before the user can experience chosen content
like business news clips, sports coverage or music videos. Yahoo! Broadcast requires users
to watch streaming ads before showing its animation, comedy, science and other video
content streams. These pre-content ads are often referred to as Gateway ads. Streaming
news site, FeedRoom and Internet film site, iFilm offer similar advertising options. In most
cases, the streaming video ads are accompanied by a related banner-type unit that
allows for click-through to the advertiser’s site.
With baseball season starting up, few fans will be able to pass up a peek or two at Major
League Baseball’s subscription site, MLB.com, especially during the workday when many
have access to high-speed Internet connections. The site provides tons of real-time
information as well as broadcasts of games and sells ad placements that brand its video
and audio stream interfaces.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 8
Niche audiences flock to Internet radio, and streaming ad management companies like
Lightningcast and Hiwire are harnessing the targeting capabilities of the Web to send
them truly relevant messages. Streaming ad insertion firm, Lightningcast, dynamically
inserts targeted audio and video ads and other content into Internet streams and can
replace terrestrial radio station ads with ads targeted based on a listener’s profile.
Hiwire’s technology serves and deletes ads from audio files in real-time, and matches ads
to the listener based on music genre and registration information.
Companies like these may be convinced that streaming ads within online audio content
leads to a high ROI; however, advertisers demand proof. Lightningcast, in conjunction
with Cingular Wireless, Arbitron and online research company, Diameter, set out to
provide some solid numbers showing the effect of the streaming audio format on brand
awareness and ad recall. Ads were streamed by Lightningcast and ran on MediAmazing
and other Internet radio networks. Sampled users were asked to respond to a survey
detailing specific components of the Cingular audio ads as well as demographic
information.
The results were impressive. The study, sponsored by Microsoft, found that increased ad
frequency had a positive effect on the brand awareness of Cingular, increasing it by 29
percent after 6 to 20 exposures to the audio ad. In addition, advertising awareness
increased 129 percent and awareness of Cingular’s “Joy of Self-Expression” tagline
increased a startling 227 percent.
Streaming media ads don’t necessarily have to accompany streaming content. Take
Eyewonder or Bluestreak, which deploy streaming video within various online ad formats
like banners, skyscrapers or interstitials. These, like all other ad formats, can run alongside
any type of Web content.
In the end, it’s all about providing context with content, according to Hiwire’s Steve
Goldberg. In his view, “a message inside a really good media vehicle will reach more
people than the brand standing alone.”
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 9
• Industry Hurdles
Technical Considerations: To Java or not to Java?
The webcasting industry is still in its infancy. Currently, there are prominent issues that will
determine the very survival of streaming content providers down the road. And, because
the media outlets are affected, so are advertisers.
A current dispute pitting downloadable streaming media players against Java-based
technologies will continue to play out in the coming year. It all comes down to the way in
which streaming audio and video is distributed and how users will prefer to listen to or
view it.
Streaming media can be delivered either through a player, like Windows Media Player,
RealPlayer or QuickTime, for instance, or through a Java-based system, like Bluestreak’s
or Eyewonder’s technologies. Player proponents believe that the experience is of higher
quality and more efficient when audio and video are distributed through a player. Java
fans argue that their streams can be viewed by anyone with Java enabled on his
computer, no matter what the connection, meaning no player plug-in download is
required.
Still, some people don’t have Java enabled, especially since Microsoft set the default
settings on its Windows XP operating system to disable Java, a rival to its C#
(pronounced "C sharp") programming language. Plus, media player acceptance is
continually on the rise. Windows Media player boasts over 350 million downloads,
RealPlayer has 250 million registered to date, and Apple’s QuickTime comes in third with
over 150 million copies in circulation. The downside: if advertisers and content providers
want to ensure the greatest possible reach, they must allow for distribution through all
players, which adds to encoding and serving expenses.
As in all nascent industries, this sort of confusion is to be expected and will surely become
less of a factor as time goes on.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 10
Royalties and Licensing Fees Threaten Net Radio:
Pay the Piper (and the Actor)
Most webcasters are in the midst of determining their ad and subscription rates. These
fledgling firms were dealt a blow in February 2002 when the U.S. Copyright Office
recommended rates for online licensing fees to be paid to record companies and artists.
The licensing fees would compensate artists or record companies for the right to play
music over all online audio streams.
Many webcasters believe that the suggested fees are too high (Internet-only webcasters
would pay 14 hundredths of a cent for every song streamed, while terrestrial radio
stations that stream music online would pay half that amount). If they do go into effect,
the fees could hamper the development of online radio, and serve to shut out small
streaming firms in favor of a few large industry players.
Licensing of streaming content is just one barrier. Webcasters must also compensate
actors whose work is featured in ads run in those content streams. These actors’ fees
became a fact of life last year when actors’ organizations demanded that all actors
receive additional payments when their TV and radio work is streamed on the Internet.
Advertisers requested that unauthorized ads be removed from Web radio streams, unless
webcasters were willing to compensate the actors themselves. This prompted large
Internet radio networks to turn off many or all of their Web streams until some sort of
settlement could be reached.
Mere months later, Clear Channel Interactive, which streams some 250 radio stations,
announced a partnership with streaming ad-insertion company, Hiwire. According to the
agreement, Hiwire would replace ads running on Clear Channel’s terrestrial broadcasts
with authorized and targeted streaming audio ads.
This and similar deals shed light on the promise of streaming media. Rather than seeing
actor’s and copyright fees as a reason to disregard streaming content online, companies
are realizing that despite those obstacles, the benefits of offering advertisers more media
space for highly-targeted communications make streaming media worthwhile.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 11
• Practical Tips from Industry Insiders
The streaming media industry may be fraught with arguments over best technologies,
best practices and where things are heading; however, if there’s one thing most people
can agree on, it’s that streaming media will follow the user’s lead.
Audrey Fleisher, creative director at Ogilvy Interactive, sums it up well. The “major
concern is the user experience, and directly related to that is how the creative execution
comes across.” In other words, a positive user experience starts with good creative and
follows with appropriate implementation of technology.
How can advertisers ensure a positive user experience? Diane Kuehn, founder and CEO
of streaming email provider, VisionPoint Media, has devised a checklist of important
things to do in order to avoid a negative brand impression when streaming. She advises
testing of streaming content on all computers, browsers, media players and Internet
connections available. If the message will stream within an email, send it to multiple test
addresses and multiple email clients.
Kuehn also stresses the fact that streaming media and television broadcasting are not
one in the same. Although re-purposing TV spots for the Web can be a cost-effective
strategy, keep in mind that what looks good on TV doesn’t necessarily look good online,
especially with slower-speed connections. Watch out for fast movement, quick
transitions, low lighting and fades.
She also recommends employing designers and producers who regularly use new
technologies like streaming. They will have a better knowledge of design, coding and
tracking constraints as well as how to best design for current player and browser versions.
Michael Hopkins, manger of sales for agency services at Arbitron goes one step further.
He says the reason agencies rarely consider Internet streaming to be its own medium is
that webcasting doesn’t yet have a “home” at ad agencies.
“At the interactive division of the agency, their domain is largely Flash and banner ads
and pop-unders. On the traditional side of the house you have broadcast radio buyers. If
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 12
you were trying to sell a streaming media campaign, you could get bounced around
quite a bit,” Hopkins says. “My best advice is, give webcasting a home in your agency.
That needs to happen. Someone needs to be responsible. For the most part, it just hasn’t
been assigned to anybody.”
Still, until advertisers and agencies see the need to establish dedicated streaming
divisions, this won’t occur on any large scale. Jen Baisch of Microsoft Corp.’s Digital
Media Division has some insight as to why this will remain a challenge. There’s “not
enough inventory,” she opines. “We need to increase the digital media that can support
more ads to create large campaigns for major advertisers.”
The most encouraging sign, according to Baisch: “Streaming advertising keeps growing,
even in this rough economy. It used to be very rare to see a streaming ad leading off a
piece of content; now it’s practically commonplace. The Internet radio stations are
getting back online using ad insertion services.”
She concludes, “Increase the amount of digital media on the Web and the advertisers
and audiences will follow.”
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 13
• Additional Resources/Acknowledgements
Learn More About Streaming Media
Supplemental information and insight into Streaming Media can be found on the
Emerging Interest website at http://www.emerginginterest.com/streamingmedia.
In addition, The Interactive Advertising Bureau has recently created an overview
presentation of the Streaming Media space as well as a glossary of Streaming Media
related terms. Both can be found on the IAB’s website at
http://www.iab.net/streamingmedia.
Special Thanks
Emerging Interest would like to thank the sponsor of this Streaming Media Smart Paper,
Windows Media, as well as those companies that provided EI with invaluable information
used in this paper, specifically: Apple, Bluestreak, Eyewonder, FeedRoom, Hiwire,
Lightningcast, MeasureCast, MindArrow Systems, RealNetworks, Unicast, VastVideo and
VisionPoint Media.
EI’s Streaming Media Smart Paper was co-written by Melinda Gipson and Kate Kaye.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 14
• Technology Comparison Chart
Download/Player
Company/Technology About the Technology Requirements
QuickTime enables real time and video-on-demand content,
placing the content file directly on a user’s hard drive, allowing Initial download of QuickTime
Apple for all users to have the same experience regardless of Player is required to play QuickTime
www.apple.com connection speed. movies.
Online marketing infrastructure provider Bluestreak hosts and
serves all ad-based videos. The Java-based technology allows
streaming to commence immediately to virtually all Internet
Bluestreak users. Playback is at the customer’s discretion, and can be user Bluestreak video is Java-based and
www.bluestreak.com activated or automatic. requires no player.
EyeWonder’s Eyeris is a proprietary, Java-based, video
streaming technology for online advertising, email, and site
Eyewonder content which allows the instant delivery of high-quality video Eyeris video is Java-based and
www.eyewonder.com and audio. It works on connections as slow as 14.4kbps. requires no player.
FeedRoom is an online video-on-demand network which hosts
and streams local news, entertainment content and more.
FeedRoom’s technology is built on Java, JavaScript, Flash, XML, Viewers can experience all
HTML and JSP. The system handles the editing, encoding, FeedRoom site content with either
FeedRoom metatags, hosting and delivery of thousands of video clips per Windows Media Player, Real Player
www.feedroom.com day. or Flash.
Hiwire technology seamlessly inserts and demographically
targets audio, audio/banner sync and Macromedia Flash video Hiwire offers an optional plug-in
advertisements into any type of online broadcast (live and component and, without any
archived terrestrial radio, Internet-only radio, etc.). The buffering, inserts advertisements
technology also enables broadcasters to manage the entire ad with or without this component into
Hiwire management process, including trafficking, invoicing, reporting Windows Media Player, Real Player
www.hiwire.com and projecting ad inventory. and MP3 platforms.
Lightningcast's network includes radio stations and Internet
only audio and video stations in all markets. Lightningcast
technology enables stations to dynamically insert targeted Lightningcast's ad insertion
audio and video ads and sponsor content (targeted traffic, technology requires no download
weather, etc.) into streams. For live radio broadcasts, the or plug-in, has no buffering and
system can replace unwanted terrestrial commercials with works across any platform including
Lightningcast AFTRA/SAG compliant targeted ads based on audience profile Windows Media Player and Real
www.lightningcast.com or broadcast content. Player.
MeasureCast provides Internet broadcasters, advertisers and
media buyers with next-day reports on streaming audience size
and demographics. The company uses a patent-pending
MeasureCast proprietary software plug-in architecture to count the audience
www.measurecast.com of streaming audio or video broadcasts. N/A
Windows Media provides a platform for creating, securing,
hosting, distributing and playing back digital media. Windows Initial download of Windows Media
Media Services is the server component of Windows Media Player is required to play Windows
Microsoft's Windows Media Technologies, optimized to distribute digital media content over Media content which is typically in
www.windowsmedia.com the Internet and corporate intranets. Windows Media format.
MindArrow Systems’ Java-based technology delivers interactive
multimedia content including streaming video and audio. The
technology platform allows MindArrow’s clients to create, MindArrow's technology uses a
MindArrow Systems deliver, track and manage e-mail marketing campaigns as well Java codec and requires no player
www.mindarrow.com as individual one-to-one communications. or plug-in.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 15
RealNetworks’ streaming media systems enable the creation,
real-time delivery and playback of audio, video and Initial download of Real Player is
RealNetworks multimedia content on the Web. RealNetworks also provides required to play RealNetworks
www.realnetworks.com content and a network of sites. content.
Superstitial ads either play perfectly
Unicast’s Superstitial is a standard, Macromedia Flash-based, or not at all. The Unicast delivery
interstitial advertising format. Unicast’s patented delivery system system pre-caches all advertising
Unicast ensures that every Superstitial ad plays for every consumer before it is ever shown to the
www.unicast.com regardless of system capabilities or website placement. consumer.
VastVideo's collection of licensed, special interest video
includes over 18,000 titles. VastVideo packages and distributes
its video library into short and long-form programming series
VastVideo and channels. Applications are programmed in ASP, Java, JSP, VastVideo supports Windows Media
www.vastvideo.com Oracle, XML. Player and Real Player.
Used for delivery of streaming media email campaigns,
VisionPoint Media’s VisionPoint 411 technology detects the type VisionPoint Media’s VisionPoint 411
of rich media that is optimal for each user based on variables technology is compatible with
VisionPoint Media and settings. VisionPoint eCampaign System (VeS) is an email Windows Media Player, Real Player,
www.visionpointmedia.com distribution and tracking system. Quicktime and Flash.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 16
Company/Technology Reporting/Tracking Site Acceptance Advertiser Clients
Apple doesn’t place ad buys using
Advertisers can track how many people hit QuickTime. Advertisers using
Apple which streams, how long they watch and at Over 30,000 sites feature QuickTime have included
www.apple.com what speed users' modems are connected. QuickTime content. BMWfilms.com and the U.S. Army.
Video clients have included Nike,
Interaction rate, click-through, interaction WorldCom, Coca Cola, Disney,
time, video play time, video play number, Bluestreak is accepted by over National Geographic, MovieFone,
Bluestreak post-impression, post-click and user 20,000 websites, portals, and New Line Cinema and America
www.bluestreak.com characteristics can be tracked. America Online. Online.
Video impressions, non-video impressions, user Advertisers include Microsoft,
interaction with video and audio controls Any site that accepts rich media Coca-Cola, Saab, UPS, New Line
(click for audio, click to mute, play/replay, can accept EyeWonder. The firm Cinema, U.S. Navy, NYSE, Wal-Mart,
Eyewonder pause, stop) as well as average length of view works with over 500 sites and Mitsubishi, Nike and Sony
www.eyewonder.com can be tracked. networks. Electronics.
Network advertisers include P&G,
FeedRoom reports any interaction with Ford, Intel, Warner Bros. and
streaming ads (which run prior to chosen Ameritrade. Enterprise customers
FeedRoom content) and component pieces, including include Cisco Systems, Ford,
www.feedroom.com click-throughs and impressions . N/A Miramax and HBO.
Hiwire's technology is used by Clear
All streaming broadcasters Channel, ESPN, Warp Radio,
(terrestrial, Internet-only, etc.) Broadcast Urban and KKLA
Campaign scheduling can be based on can use Hiwire technology to Communications. Advertiser
format, geography, demographics, and insert, traffic and report ads as clients include AT&T, H&R Block,
Hiwire dayparting. Traditional radio and interactive well as track audience statistics Visa, Honda, Budweiser, Red Bull,
www.hiwire.com metrics are also available. and project inventory. Hershey Foods and Dramamine.
In addition to content delivery performance
and listening sessions by day, week, month Any site that streams audio, video Audio and video advertisers have
and year on both broadcast and regular or flash, displays banners or pop- included Anheuser Busch,
calendar schedules, capture of time/date, ups, or uses a Windows or Real KingWorld, Nokia, Fox TV, Sprint,
Lightningcast channel, genre and site of all ad impressions is platform can use Lightningcast Clarinex, Cingular Wireless,
www.lightningcast.com available to ad clients and affiliates. technology. Dentyne, Beefeater and others.
MeasureCast's reports are based on radio
industry standard terms and definitions, Clients include streaming
including AQH, CUME, TSL and demographic MeasureCast can provide broadcasters such as ABC Radio
composition. Reports include Hour-by-Hour, audience measurement for Networks, Entercom, Loudeye
MeasureCast Daily Trend, Ranker and Age, Gender and virtually any streaming Technologies, Radio Free Virgin,
www.measurecast.com Region Composition. broadcaster. and MediAmazing.
Hundreds of sites employ
Windows Media technology. To
serve Windows Media ads, a Clients include Virgin Entertainment
Windows Media server and a link Group, Mercedes-Benz USA, Aetna,
Microsoft's Windows Media to download the player is General Mills, Hewlett-Packard,
www.windowsmedia.com Information not provided. required. Unisys and H&R Block.
The proprietary tracking platform monitors user Clients include Mercedes-Benz,
behavior in the email and tracks connection Site acceptance isn’t an issue Johnson & Johnson, Viacom,
speed, open rate, click-through, media play, because marketing messages Presidential Candidate George W.
MindArrow Systems time spent interacting, operating system, and are sent directly to the customer's Bush, Hewlett-Packard and
www.mindarrow.com email client type. email client. Northwest Airlines.
The proprietary tracking platform monitors user RealNetworks technology has Real has run streaming ads for
behavior in the email and tracks connection been an accepted streaming McDonalds, Absolut, Intel, IBM, Sun
speed, open rate, click-through, media play, technology for so long, the Microsystems, MCI WorldCom,
RealNetworks time spent interacting, operating system, and number of sites that accept it is Verizon, AT&T, BMW, Warner
www.realnetworks.com email client type. no longer tracked. Brothers and AOL.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 17
Click-through, form/data entry, multiple URL Advertisers that have used Unicast
click-through, printing, replay and post-click Superstitials have been sold by Superstitials include Microsoft,
Unicast conversion can be tracked by all commonly more than 800 websites and ad BMW, Financial Times, Nextel, Sony
www.unicast.com accepted ad-serving technologies. networks worldwide. and Hasbro.
Hundreds of sites use VastVideo’s
technology and services. Clients have included Yahoo!,
When registration is involved, VastVideo can Because VastVideo is an ASP Real, Microsoft, Earthlink,
VastVideo track whom, when, what and how users solution, only an HTML link is InfoSpace, Scotts and Hachette
www.vastvideo.com interact with the media window or micro-site. required by the site. Filipachi.
VeS provides real time tracking on opens, If the recipient has Windows
clicks, bounces, fails, replies, viral forwards, Media Player, Real Player, Apple Clients include Microsoft,
and auto replies including real time snapshot Quicktime or Flash plug-in loaded DoubleClick, Siemens, Global
by individual for all of their interactions, as well for Flash content, VisionPoint 411 Knowledge, Lucent/CSG Systems,
VisionPoint Media as website activity and ROI driven from content can be viewed within an HP, Zentrophy and Interstate
www.visionpointmedia.com specific mailings. email client. Batteries.
EI smart papers : Streaming Media 18