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From the "Biz" Archives:
by Tim LaTorre/EB Insider >> Aspen Fest Proves Comedy Rules Web Entertainm
As seems to be the case with every major festival this year, those attending
the Aspen Comedy Arts Festival spent much of their time buzzing about the
Web. At panels such as "Networks and the Net," speaker after speaker
discussed the sometimes insane pace of change in online entertainment, and
went back and forth on discussions regarding who holds more power, content
providers or distributors (content seemed to be the consensus), and how
entertainment is being "commodified" by advertising. The discussion left
some dazed, including James L. Brooks, who, according to Variety reports,
wondered aloud whether old-fashioned things like "story" and "character"
still mattered in this Next Gen Entertainment world. But there was no
stopping the dot-com armies, as reps from Entertaindom, iCAST, the Den and
festival sponsor Excite were out in full force trolling for Web-ready
content. As if to prove the point of comedy's primacy in online
entertainment, Dreamworks/Imagine's Pop.com took the opportunity at the
festival to make their first acquisition, of the 20 minute short film "The
Dancing Cow" from filmmaker Taz Goldstein.
>> Online Animation Stays on a Roll as Mondo Media Rakes it in
Alongside comedy, animation is currently the big winner in Next Gen
Entertainment, a fact thrown into dramatic relief by the $20 million round
of financing closed by streaming animation producer and syndicator Mondo
Media (www.mondomed.com) this week. Mondo Media provides a series of
episodic animated Flash shows such as "Thugs on Film," "Like, News" and "The
God and Devil Show" to sites such as Netcenter, Entertaindom and
Macromedia's showcase site Shockwave.com, as well as newly announced
partners AtomFilms, Alta Vista, Excite@Home and washingtonpost.com. Much of
the new funding came from Macromedia, a smart move considering all of Mondo
Media's work is done using their Flash tools - increases in Mondo Media's
reach can help Macromedia's Flash extend its penetration and exposure as
well. According to Variety, Mondo will use the gobs of cash to acquire new
content and lure in more A-list Hollywood talent, a trail blazed by
Shockwave's recent pricey deals with people like Tim Burton and Stan Lee.
(In a related announcement, Entertaindom picked up another season of "The
God and Devil Show," an additional 17 episodes to go into production
immediately.)
>> Fuselets
Yahoo Fest Slate Set...
AtomFilms Oscar Booty...
Hitplay Media Makes Moves...
Dual TV-Net Usage up...
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