Video has steadily been climbing the ladder of importance by both consumers and marketers. Rich media has the ability to strengthen a brands recognition among consumers and is proven to be much more engaging than a static website or advertisement.

A recent study done by metrics firm comScore and VideoEgg, a rich media advertising network found that brands that integrated video into its marketing campaign increased favourability, ratings, recognition and engagement.

“We believe engagement is what truly drives brand metrics,” said Troy Young, VideoEgg president. “The results have important implications for brand advertisers seeking to maximize brand lift, and further validate our focus on delivering the right mix of creative. . .to optimize online brand engagement.” (more…)

Suffering two quarter-life crisis’ friends Alex Sabine and Luke Vigeant have decided to embark on a massive road trip that will span North America in a self-discovery style journey that will be entirely directed by fans and user-generated content (UGC). (more…)

The 82nd annual Academy Awards is dipping its toes into the large pool of social networking this year in an attempt to boost ratings from all-time lows and harness the power of user-generated content (UGC) to engage a more desirable audience.

With the introduction of a more populist list of best picture nominees, along with a list that has doubled in size, and a pair of new media-friendly producers the show hopes that an overall more aggressive social media strategy will change the outcome of this years show. (more…)

Yesterday the Indianapolis Colts hosted the New Orleans Saints in the XLIV Super Bowl. Millions of fans around the country have been waiting to see the athletes, the plays and the entertainment, including the much anticipated 2010 Super Bowl ads. What fans won’t see this year is a banned GoDaddy.com commercial that has spurred controversy and a video contest called Think You Can Make a Better Go Daddy Commercial? (more…)

The Gospel Music Channel is once again partnering with FameCast Media to present a battle of the bands contest organized by the American Heart Association Team to raise awareness about stroke prevention through a fun, competitive, digital entertainment experience.

Stroke is America’s number three killer and leading cause of sever, long-term disability. As a part of its Power to End Stroke campaign, the American Heart Association plans to educate people through music, by bringing choirs across America together for the online competition. (more…)

This past August the BBC began a social experiment in user-generated content (UGC) to generate buzz surrounding the launch of a forthcoming television series called The Virtual Revolution which has been an open and collaborative production the encouraged the online audience to help shape the series. (more…)

W Network, a subsidiary of Corus Entertainment is embarking on a cross-Canada search to find talented individuals to join the W Experts team. The competition has been heavily promoted on television and online and has adopted a military theme, warning entrants that this competition will take a lot of knowledge, hard work and a lot of personality. (more…)

YouTube, the popular video sharing site has recently introduced a stripped back design for video player pages which it hopes will make the site more appealing and is potentially the key to its future success.

Back in 2009 YouTube announced it would be looking into soliciting professional content to increase revenue. The new light design is hoping to draw the attention of major film companies and movie studios as viewers will pay more attention to what they are watching and less to the interface surrounding it. (more…)

Three of the biggest names in music and entertainment are teaming up with Studio One Media, Inc. to find a Boy Band for the next generation. Perez Hilton, the self-named “Queen of All Media”, Simon Fuller, the man behind “American Idol”, and Jamie King, the prolific pop music tour director are working together to find the group. (more…)

Eating healthy just got a little bit cooler with ‘Blink” magazine, an online publication created by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in the UK and Dubit. Blink is part of a campaign to promote healthy living in teens aged 13 to 16. It is being hailed as the first online magazine to exist as a social networking application across Facebook. (more…)