Conglomerates are active in new media, and distribution of content over broadband channels has been an area of emphasis. Cartoon Network New Media will target boys 8-14 with its new MMOG next spring. © & ™ 2007 Cartoon Network.

In the last year and a half, the big entertainment conglomerates have become very active in the new-media space, testing initiatives and even creating revenue-generating businesses. While independent animators and small animation studios don't have the resources of the big players, they share the same goal: to position themselves to succeed in the digital realm. And they can learn from the major studios' early new-media experiments.

Each of the studios' digital strategies is unique, but all have similar marketing and financial objectives. "The various new and emerging digital technologies allow distributors to substantially increase the value of content to end users," says Matthew Glotzer, Twentieth Century Fox's svp, digital media. "The past 12 to 18 months has been a period of successful experimentation for the industry as a whole, and this will continue, but we're also at the point where real businesses are ready to emerge."

At MTV Networks, digital initiatives serve a business need by generating ad sales and direct revenue streams, according to Steve Youngwood, evp of digital for Nickelodeon/MTVN Kids and Family Group. "It's also a marketing platform for us," he adds, "which we use in convergence with TV, our magazine or even our hotels."

Broadband Initiatives
Distribution of content over broadband channels has been one area of industry-wide emphasis, although each entertainment company has approached the segment in its own way.

"Our focus has been to translate the brand interactively through gaming," says Paul Condolora, svp/gm, Cartoon Network New Media. Over the last five years, he says, this strategy has not only brought the network more viewers, but has created a very engaged audience.

The company's demographic sweet spot is kids 6-11, but, as time goes on, more of its games target younger and older audiences. For example, its new massively multiplayer online game (MMOG), which will debut next spring, targets boys 8-14. Developed in partnership with Korean developer Grigon Ent., the game is the studio's first MMOG and will be free to download, with add-ons available by subscription or micro-transaction. It will feature various Cartoon Network characters, with which players, through their avatars, will be able to interact.

MTV Networks' broadband strategy also has had a heavy emphasis on gaming, with hundreds of free games among the content available on its Nickelodeon-branded sites, including Nicktropolis.com, Nick.com and Nickjr.com. The company also has acquired third-party gaming sites including Addictinggames.com, for teen boys; Neopets, a casual MMOG for teens; and Shockwave, a gaming site targeted mainly toward women.

Nickelodeon upgraded its broadband video player at Nick.com. Turbonick 2.0 offers continuous video streaming, applications for content mash-ups, customized playlists and gaming. © Nickelodeon Digital Media.

In addition to their broader gaming initiatives, the studios and networks often create one-off online gaming events as a way to promote film and TV releases. DreamWorks Animation partnered with Mark Burnett Prods. and AOL for The Flushed Away Underground Adventure, an online gaming site consisting of 24 individual games. Released prior to the theatrical premiere of Flushed Away, the venture marked the first time DreamWorks had created original animation specifically for an online game. Prizes and rewards were offered for game play; sponsors included Kohl's and Sara Lee.

Of course, gaming is not the only area of activity in the broadband space. On the video side, Nickelodeon upgraded its broadband video player at Nick.com, Turbonick 2.0, in October 2006. Turbonick offers continuous video streaming, applications for content mash-ups, customized playlists, and other features, as well as gaming.

In 2006, Cartoon Network added video to its broadband mix, launching two video-on-demand (VOD) channels: Toonami Jetstream, for action and anime content, and Cartoon Network Video, for comedy. Toonami Jetstream, a joint venture with VIZ Media, offers free-on-demand, full-length episodes and delivered more than 9.5 million video streams in its first month of operation. Content includes episodes shown on the network, as well as Japanese series not available on U.S. television.

The Walt Disney Internet Group, which oversees Disney Online, released an updated version of its Disney Connection broadband entertainment destination in May 2007. Available through certain Internet providers, Disney Connection features single and multiplayer games and targeted entertainment channels for various demographic segments. Users can access premium subscription services, such as Disney Game Kingdom Online and Playhouse Disney Preschool Time Online; view full-length episodes from the Disney Channel, Toon Disney and Playhouse Disney; create playlists; and customize online channels from Disney game, video, music and chat content. Other broadband initiatives include the MMOGs Toontown Online, for families, and Pirates of the Caribbean Online, among many others. All told, there are 45 Disney-branded websites throughout the world.