MTV Cuts More Online Deals

on 08 January 2008, 12:59
by Justin Moresco

MTV Networks on on Tuesday announced a partnership deal with five online video sites to offer clips and episodes on-demand and for free, the latest move in the media company’s efforts to increase its online presence.

Dailymotion, GoFish, imeem, MeeVee, and Veoh—a mix of web TV, social media and user-generated services—signed agreements, according to an MTVN statement released to coincide with the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

The web-based companies will now have access to thousands of clips of high-quality video under MTVN’s family of channels, including MTV, Comedy Central, and VH1. Terms of the deals were not disclosed, but MTVN will share ad revenue generated at the sites.

This is just the latest content deal for Viacom, which owns MTVN. In December, the media giant announced an agreement with Microsf to offer content from the company’s cable network and motion picture business, which besides MTVN includes Paramount Pictures and BET Networks.
Gartner analyst Van Baker said Viacom and other U.S. media companies—including all four major U.S. broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC)—are experimenting with ways to distribute their shows online.

“Nobody knows what the winning business model will be. Maybe there will be many,” he said. “The mentality now is to throw it against the wall and see if it sticks.”

Mr. Baker said among the broadcast networks, NBC and CBS are positioning themselves at opposite ends of the spectrum—and their success or failure could be a signal for others to follow.
NBC primarily offers its content at Hulu.com, a joint-venture with Fox, while CBS has cut deals across the web. If NBC can draw many viewers to Hulu, it will benefit from not having to share its ad revenue with a separate host, while CBS will share most of its ad revenue but should have a larger online presence.

Based on Viacom’s recent moves, the company appears to be following the model of CBS. Both companies are controlled by Sumner Redstone.

Prior to this latest deal, MTVN already had agreements with AOL, Bebo, Comcast’s Fancast, Joost, and MSN. MTVN said its content is also available through “all major download-to-own services” and through its portfolio of 300 web sites, such as TheDailyShow.com.

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