STREAMING, SHOOTS AND SLAYING / ROUND UP

It's all going on in the world of video streaming this week, as speculation appears on Gizmodo that Netflix that it will soon offer its Watch Instantly video streaming service on Apple iPhones, iPod Touch and the Nintendo Wii (http://gizmodo.com/5329082/netflix-could-be-cooking-up-streaming-on-the-iphone-and-wii). Despite DVDs hanging on in there as something people will buy, propped up thanks to the high quality of Blu Ray, the temptation of converting everything to a file is hard to resist.

Microsoft has also got in on the streaming act, launching the beta version of its ad-funded MSN Video Player in the UK yesterday. Content deals are already established with BBC Worldwide and All3Media and the channel will stream full length TV shoes for free, using its Silverlight platform. http://it.tmcnet.com/news/2009/07/30/4299459.htm  

We're tripping over Augmented Reality in every direction, but were interested to see that Templar Publishing will launch the UK's first AR book, bringing a 3D Dragon to life for Dr Drake's Comprehensive Compendium of Dragonology. Users can approach the beast safely, by viewing the 3D rendering from different angles on their computer screen via a web cam. AR experts, Total Immersion, constructed the technology.

Every kid loves a bouncy castle, and this summer Britvic is hoping to see its appeal rocket in a futuristic twist on the children's party classic. In an integrated campaign blasting off from a space-themed website, its 12ft high Fruit Shoot Explorer will be visiting playgrounds across Holland all summer, visiting the neighbourhoods of competition winners. The campaign, developed by BSUR, Amsterdam, seeks to brighten up some dingy play areas whilst associating Fruit Shoots with futuristic fun and adventure, and when the bouncy rocket's not in town, kids can check in to the webpage to access games and downloads, including a widget counting down to FSE-1's launch. Kids can enhance their chances of the rocket landing nearby, by winning games on the website. With plenty buzz already built up on TV the rocket's arrival marks the final, real-world stage of a wide-ranging integrated campaign and a voyage which gives kids a taste of space adventure. www.fruitshoot.nl 

An interesting piece in The Guardian on how virtual worlds are quietly turning a profit, while social networks are getting all the headlines. It cites Club Penguin, Habbo and Neopets as having mastered micropayments and subscriptions, with membership of virtual worlds growing by 39% to an estimated 579 million in the second quarter of 2009, according to zero.co.uk. www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2009/jul/29/virtual-worlds   

More interesting reading - this time from The New York Times - on how we can expect to see ad targeting in the future, right down to the customisation of specific websites, thanks to detailed data tracking www.nytimes.com/2009/07/31/business/media/
31privacy.html?_r=1  

AdAge looks at where ad-funded mobile network Blyk went wrong, explaining that despite huge positive response rates to campaigns, it didn't manage to hit the user numbers it had hoped for. http://adage.com/globalnews/article?article_id=138236

Sporting rivalries run deep, and so Chelsea Football Club were happy to claim the first victory over their rivals, after its site http://chelseafc.com won SportBusiness' Top 100 Ultimate Sport Website Awards, also beating the likes of the NBA and Sky Sports.