Google Perception vs. Reality – It’s Kind of Like The Matrix
Glenn Rubenstein is a total dork. Okay, so that’s not really news, but I was thinking about how the internet is fast becoming The Matrix, with Google search results shaping the perceived reality for those too tapped in to even notice anything else. What got my inner sci-fi geek started down this path was the Money.co.uk debacle. The site ran a piece about a kid supposedly using his father’s credit cards to hire a prostitute – and reputable news sources reprinted the story ad naseum, before it was revealed to be marketing hoax. Part of the reason it got so much traction was due to Google, which spidered and indexed story after story citing the original article, giving both the story and site enough weight to be believed by larger and larger media outlets. But hey, we can’t all be Neo. So to quote Morpheus, “This is your last chance. After this, there is no turning back. You take the blue pill – the story ends, you wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill – you stay in Wonderland and I show you how deep the rabbit-hole goes.” – Glenn Rubenstein
Folding The Wish: The ARG community rallies for Puppet-Master Dave Szulborski
If there is one thing that players of Alternate Reality Games are used to, it’s offering their help to strangers faced with a life-threatening situation. But recently, many from the ARG community went above and beyond their past efforts to show support for one well-loved puppetmaster who had fallen ill — proving what the community is capable of accomplishing when it’s *really* not a game.
- Glenn Rubenstein
Make Mine Marvel! Rubenstein to Head Marvel’s Online Video and Animation Group
Don’t jump to conclusions about what Glenn Rubenstein is up to (I should be so lucky!). The Rubenstein in the headline above is Ira Rubenstein, and he’s been named as the head of Marvel Entertainment’s new Marvel Global Digital Media Group – a division focused on extending the reach of the Marvel Universe into new digital realms – including online video and animation. And as a creator/showrunner and writer-director working in the field of online video, who also happens to be a comic book geek at heart, it brings out the “True Believer” in me as to what new and exciting possibilities this announcement might hold for fans of Marvel Comics.
- Glenn Rubenstein
Spot Runner & Co. Make Television Advertising Easier Than Ever
Spot Runner is more established than some of the newcomers to the TV Advertising 2.0 race, and through their involvement with 60Frames it’s clear that they have an understanding of the online video and social media world. But is being in the know enough to combat Google’s TV Adwords and the Cable Industry’s Project Canoe?
- Glenn Rubenstein
Google vs. Cable Industry over TV Advertising 2.0
Google just launched Adwords for TV via the DISH Network. Meanwhile, six Cable Television giants have invested $150 million into Project Canoe in an effort to protect their annual $5 billion in local TV advertising revenue. At stake is the future of targeted TV ads, which may go from simply geographic and channel-based to user-specific ad content. Will the Adwords model with its UGC and social media influence win, or will it be big business calling the shots?
The WB is Coming Back with 7 Original Online Video Series
What would you expect from a new online video offering backed by one of the entertainment industry’s largest studios, hosted at a domain name once used for their (now defunct) television network? The WB is going a slightly different route, with seven new and original online video series that will make use of the current online landscape, including social media applications.
