Bebo today joined the many large distribution destinations who lack any original compelling content and called out on content owners - mainly video content owners - to share the goods in exchange for branding and revenue.
Indeed, it’s all about perspective. The intro sentence is my version of the facts, a content owner.
If you read a lot of tech media’s take on it, you’ll see it from the other way around, such as, “Bebo opened up its social network to video partners who want access to its captive audience.”
That’s not really the case, that’s the spin. MySpace, Facebook, Bebo, Veoh, etc., all lack any proprietary content. Yet, they have massive audiences. They are getting marketers attention but the kind of user generated crap that their audiences are generating is not cutting it, so one by one they are “opening up and going platform.”
It’s a big pile of PR BS. Bottom line: content is was and shall remain king, and this is the latest manifestation. Whatever you want to call it, it’s a smart move from Bebo.
Also, big old media will initially try and test anything (think NBC and YouTube) but eventually, it’s hard to teach new tricks to old dogs, so while 22 partners have signed on to Bebo, over time, old media will take back control (think Hulu).
But, like I said, that’s my version of the facts…
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