Comments on: NBC Picks Up Made For MySpace Show QuarterLife

By: n.sputnik » Comments on the TV and Movie Writers' Strike and New Media

n.sputnik » Comments on the TV and Movie Writers' Strike and New Media — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 00:32:29 +0000

[...] media, such as in the case of WallStrip which was acquired by CBS in May of this year or Quaterlife which was acquired by NBC in November of this [...]

By: garrett

garrett — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 16:42:11 +0000

It’s actually the second internet show to be picked up by a mainstream TV channel, We Need Girlfriends was the first — http://teevieo.com/girlfriends.....rren-star/

By: Kat

Kat — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 06:42:12 +0000

Um yeah, CBS beat them to this a few weeks ago by getting the rights for We Need Girlfriends…maybe the difference is WNG will be turned into a real series and not just the web episodes aired on TV.

By: kappy

kappy — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 01:06:51 +0000

I only watched the first 20 seconds and I have one word: LAME.

By: Bill Cammack

Bill Cammack — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 23:58:35 +0000

+1 to the people that mentioned that this show was made for MSM initially, got rejected, reworked (according to other posts/articles/interviews), and THEN posted to the internet.

Besides the fact that Paul points out above that http://www.manandwive.tv got picked up before Quarterlife did, the title “made for internet program” doesn’t accurately tell the story of what’s going on here. It’s not like “Something To Be Desired” or “The Burg” or “Rocketboom” or “JetSetShow” got picked up. This was a well-funded program, put together by television veterans (Thirtysomething).

Anyway, congrats to them, but this is no rags-to-riches story, to be sure.

By: Paul Kontonis

Paul Kontonis — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 21:27:56 +0000

A much earlier show than Quarterlife to go from internet to TV was Man and Wife, http://www.reelpopblog.com/200.....up_fa.html
You can still the online show at http://www.manandwife.tv
They got picked up in early June and are in TV production right now.

By: Frank Sinton

Frank Sinton — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 20:02:28 +0000

Duncan - yes, we have seen video clip feeds from Operator11, Ustream and others. But i think there is an important market differentiator between live shows / clips versus original web shows. It is the difference between primetime TV and late night TV. I see quarterlife being closer to the former…

By: Vance

Vance — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 19:53:23 +0000

@ Shane - Spoken like a true corporate cog

I watched 2/3 of the first episode and wondered: why the heck are they splitting one episode into three parts? (With credits at the end of each part!) It really interrupts the flow.

I would like to see this show distributed via Miro or iTunes for free. Though, that definitely won’t happen since NBC will need to inject some DRM to please shareholders (nix Miro) and NBC has had a recent tiff with iTunes (nix iTunes).

It would be nice if the NBC direct program worked on Macs and they distributed this show through that channel too…

By: Shane

Shane — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 19:18:13 +0000

quarterlife is not “made for Myspace TV”, though it does play there. quarterlife has its own site at quarterlife.com where you can watch the episodes on a larger, higher-quality player. quarterlife.com is also a social networking site for artists, and offers nice features not found on myspace, including videocommenting and a widget called “The Portfolio”.

By: Mayank Kumar

Mayank Kumar — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 17:08:30 +0000

This is a good news. Also note that creators like lonelygirl15 in youtube have been paid by youtube for providing with popular videos there. So, apart from web acting as a distribution channel, it has also enabled original content to take on content from traditional media.

By: Steve Ballmer

Steve Ballmer — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 17:04:05 +0000

Quarter life …
Is it about you Duncan?
lol
I kill me!

By: Jurado

Jurado — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 11:51:18 +0000

That’s right and its going to go after the O’Really ratings!!! lol

By: www.carversation.com

www.carversation.com — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 10:13:19 +0000

that is so cool

By: Duncan Riley

Duncan Riley — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 09:23:35 +0000

Frank
The live services offer video clip services as well…if you check out what Chris Pirillo is doing with Ustream as a good example.

By: Alex Michaels

Alex Michaels — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 08:57:41 +0000

Interesting, but let’s not forget that the creators of this show are Marshall Herskovitz and Edward Zwick, creators of the TV shows My So-Called Life and Thirtysomething.

They are very talented, but also, they are already part of “Hollywood.”

By: Frank Sinton

Frank Sinton — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 07:52:27 +0000

According to PaidContent, this web show only became a web show because it wasn’t originally picked up by the studios.

We have been enjoying an uptick and the focus on videoblogging is nice. I’m not sure why you listed the live streaming services? The core videoblogging services are sites like Blip.tv, Mefeedia.com, and others who focus on episodic video / video series. I’ve already had a few network execs tell me they use our service to help discover new web shows.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:45:10 +0000

Didn’t they pitch it to ABC before it was a “made for MySpace TV show”? Bit of a grey area to be saying that the “deal is the first time a made for internet program has been picked up by a television network in the United States.”

By: Faramarz

Faramarz — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:38:47 +0000

Thanks Duncan. I did not even know about these guys. You just made me watch the 3 parts entirely, and be refreshingly pleased that the hottie from an episode of Californication plays a recurring role in it. awesome!

By: Duncan Riley

Duncan Riley — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:38:43 +0000

Alan
I’d think that’s a fair call

By: Loren

Loren — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:24:21 +0000

I bet the striking show writers will like this.

By: Alan Wilensky

Alan Wilensky — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 06:19:30 +0000

“…and charts the sometimes excruciating, sometimes comic, often emotional experiences…”

Yes, I can see the excruciating part coming down the road here. So, we can assume this will be no, “Citizen Kane”? Hmmm?