AOL gears up for online music battleground
- Added:
- Jun 14, 2010
Tomorrow sees the launch of AOL’s new music platform as the portal joins the battle for online music provision. ‘Cambio’ is billed as following the MTV model of music video content, aimed at the 13-24 year old age group. Early indications are that the service will be ad-funded, aiming to push AOL’s video ad revenues and create new inventory at a time when this target audience is being drawn into YouTube and online TV networks. Alongside daily and weekly video programming there will be further content, and localisation is expected.
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We were acutely aware, early on, that things were suffering” in traditional media, explains an AOL spokesperson. “Having the ability to reach your audience yourself - and the ability for the artists and entertainment company to interact directly with brands - was the future.”
Cambio, a partnership between AOL and the Jonas Group (The company run by the father of the Jonas brothers), will be launching this Tuesday.
The Jonas Group will be providing several different web shows, including an entertainment talk show, a late-night talk show, a "docudrama", and other webisode series.
The site will be funded by ads, including sponsored and traditional banner ads. One example is "Cambio Cares," a Bayer-sponsored series.
Tim Armstrong, chief executive of AOL, said Cambio is a major part of a content strategy, calling it “an investment in what we believe is going to be a future network for the Internet.”
In an interview with the New York Times, Armstrong asserted that Cambio would be profitable on its first day because of AOL’s infrastructure and the participation of big advertisers.
Video is the second fastest-growing category of online advertising, behind search.
