SEATTLE, WA–Making the shift from a video aggregator to a video platform is not easy–that's the warning from Ian Blaine, CEO of thePlatform who spoke to Beet.TV at this company's headquarters about the shakeout in the online video business this year and how it will continue to unfold.
Already, casualties of 2009 include content makers like 60 Frames and ManiaTV, while other online video firms are changing management, as Move Networks has done, or changing business models, as Joost is attempting in its transition from aggregator to white-label platform provider.
The latter is an especially tough feat to pull off, Blaine told us. That's because the platform business is already competitive and filled with companies that have experience, technology and proven cash flow.
"[Back in 2006] there was a lot of speculation in the market to create the next YouTube, so a lot of companies that took that money re-oriented to where the platform is — providing services to media companies," he explained. "But that takes functionality and experience to make it work…so we have seen a shakeout in companies trying to compete."
To succeed in the video platform business requires not just solid technology, but also distribution and search engine optimization. Plus, many of the players in this field like thePlatform, Brightcove, ExtendMedia and Magnify.net are already making money, making it tougher for new players to make inroads.
Company Announces New Partners
On Sept. 10, thePlatform announced more than 20 new partners for its partner program called Framework. Partners can integrate with thePlatform tools and customers. New partners include Yume, Brightroll, Visible Measures, TubeMogul and others, bringing the total number of partners to more than 80.
Daisy Whitney, Senior Producer
Editor's Note: This is our third and final interview with Ian Blaine.
