The newest effort by NBC Universal (GE) is to create an on-demand advertising website named Didja.com.
Universal will use a large archive of classic and current TV commercials, movie trailers and other content related to their brand. Much of it will be mined from the USA cable network's content.
Bonnie Hammer, president of the USA Network said: "Didja.com is the logical next step in the changing dynamic between consumers and advertisers. There's no doubt that commercials are major drivers of pop culture -- all you have to do is check out traffic on any video-sharing site. We want to own that watercooler conversation."
Hammer will tap the advertising sales division to populate the site with content. Eventually they're looking for advertisers to pay for key placement spots on the site. Another strategy is to encourage them to create their own microsite within Didja.com, creating their own brand channel. Eventually the site will include all units within the NBC Universal family.
To attract early advertisers, the company is offering premium positions on the site for between five to ten companies getting in on the ground floor of the startup. They will also have access to cross-promotions on-air.
Of course the underlying idea is to create a site where the ads are considered entertainment, and will generate the type of traffic which can build another solid stream of income to the company from the included click-through ads.
Included with Didja will be a large number of social-networking tools, along with the ability of users to create their own mashups of their favorit brands through an included kit.
The site, not to be confused with the partnership with News Corp. (NWS-A) deal, will launch early 2008.
Comment Preview