I Want My Google

Filed in archive Internet TV on August 9, 2006

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REMEMBER WHEN PEOPLE WANTED THEIR MTV? Now, it seems, they want their Google. MTV included.

Twenty-five years ago, [MTV] was the drawing card. Everyone wanted it. ... Content-starved teens wanted MTV so much, they would harass their parents to get cable just to access the channel. ... and with the help of ad genius George Lois, [they] created one of the greatest pull campaigns ever designed. "I Want My MTV" may have been aimed at consumers, but cable operators got the message when their 800 numbers began ringing off the hook.

So we find it really interesting, and a bit ironic, that a media brand created via pull marketing is now embracing pull media (online search) as its new distribution strategy.

... [After] countless meetings, conference calls, and thousands of frequent flyer miles between New York and Mountain View later, and [Viacom chief Tom] Freston's PR team typed out the following statement:

"Collaborating with Google gives us a terrific opportunity to take our content and distribute it even more widely on the Web in a seamless and targeted way. This deal fits in perfectly with our strategy to deliver the best content to our audiences -- wherever they are. We're very happy to be working with Google, a true innovator in content distribution."

Read between the lines. That white space you see translates into the real story behind this announcement: "A major power shift has just occurred. MTV, the reigning king of media brands, has just handed its crown over to its successor. Long live Google."

Read the whole article.