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AUSTIN, Texas - San Francisco-based Bebo, the world's third most popular social networking Web site, has  partnered with twenty-two major media companies including ESPN, Turner, MTV, CBS and BBC, and will allow them to add music and video content to its site and to keep any advertising revenue generated while still retaining copyright. Prime "Lost Generation" 13 to 24 Demographic In an effort to gain ground on the two leaders in social networking, News Corp.'s MySpace and Facebook, the new partnerships, which were announced at events in London and New York Tuesday, will allow the twenty-two media companies to add content to Bebo free of charge, and are part of an initiative the company calls Open Media. Bebo's users are primarily in the 13 to 24 age group prized by advertisers, and it has been estimated that most members spend more time online than watching television. In addition to those companies already mentioned, two-year-old Bebo has partnered with Yahoo Inc., JibJab Media Inc., and Sony Pictures Entertainment Company's Crackle. Partners using Bebo's Open Media platform will be able to use their own branded video players free of charge. Bebo's Own Online Shows Bebo is Britain's top social networking Web site, and is hoping to become known as a "social media network" with the new media additions announced yesterday, and by producing its own content such as the daily online drama "KateModern", which is based on the popular "lonelygirl15" series of online videos. In the upcoming months Bebo is set to release its own reality series called "The Gap Year", and an interactive teen program called "Sofia's Diary". It is estimated that 25 million people have viewed Bebo's "KateModern" episodes, each of which is roughly four minutes long. Those using Bebo can include music and videos on their custom user profile pages and share them with friends who are in their network on the site. Bebo users can also choose to be notified when new material becomes available on any of the content channels they belong to - which Bebo calls "Channel Profiles", and also have the opportunity to connect with others sharing similar music and video interests. A Natural Next Step September Web traffic rankings saw Bebo receiving just under 20 million visitors, well behind leader MySpace's  107 million and second place Facebook's 73.5 million visitors for the month, according to figures from Internet traffic analysis firm comScore Inc. Bebo's President Joanna Shields sees social media networking as a natural next move for the company. "Social networking for us was act one. Act two is using user-generated content, dramas created for Bebo and content from the majors to engage users," Shields said in a recent article in The Los Angeles Times. Media companies may find Bebo's platform an attractive alternative to sites such as Google's YouTube, where they have very little control over their original content. Bebo users will be able to add original programming from Sony including animation, sketch comedy and independent music. Partner Crackle is a Sausalito, California-based studio that places user-generated content into theaters and onto television, and has partnered with other social networks including both Facebook and MySpace. The full list of partners in Bebo's Open Media program include the following:  | Yahoo! | | Crackle | | | ESPN | | Ustream | | | CBS | | Endemol | | | BBC | | SumoTV | | | Last.fm | | FabChannel | | | MTV Networks | | Premium TV | | | Turner Broadcasting System | | ITN | | | JibJab | | Next New Networks | | | BSkyB | | Kontraband | | | Channel 4 | | Music Nation | | | VBS | | Ministry of Sound | Going Beyond Widgets Bebo hopes that having "thousands of hours of premium entertainment content from some of the world's best known media brands" will help it become as popular in other parts of the world as it has been in the U.K. and Ireland. Bebo appears to be looking beyond enticing new users entirely with so-called widget type applications, small programs which run on social networking services and provide entertainment. "The spectrum of social networking is evolving beyond utilities and applications," said Shields. "Bebo is a 'Social Media Network'  where culture and content come together and people use media and entertainment as a means of self-expression," she said. Shields seemed to find particular value in the prospects Bebo's Open Media platform presents to advertisers. "By opening our platform to media owners, who gain free access to our community while retaining control over their brand, their content and their revenues, we are creating valuable new inventory for advertisers and a new business model for the entire media industry," Shields said. A new customizable "Personal Video Profile" is now available to Bebo members, where they can manage their favorite videos from amongst the content provided by the media partners. The content from the new partners comes on top of user-generated content already widely shared on the Bebo Web site. Greg Clayman, Executive Vice President of Digital Distribution for MTV Networks sees the partnership with Bebo giving users what they have come to expect. "Our audiences increasingly expect greater access to their favorite comedy, music and pop-culture programming," Clayman said. "Bebo's new Open Media platform allows us to distribute our content and our marketing partners' messages in an environment where consumers can quickly and easily share it with others and forge even deeper communities around the programming they love," he said. Fantastic Initiative for BBC Partner BBC sees the Bebo initiative as a good way to bring its content to younger audiences. Ashley Highfield, BBC's director of future media and technology called the plan "a fantastic new initiative that offers the BBC another avenue to reach a wider audience, and in particular engage with younger viewers," according to a recent BBC News article. The BBC will offer clips from its shows "Strictly come Dancing" and "The Mighty Boosh" on Bebo, along with parts of its BBC One series "Robin Hood". Clips from such classic BBC programs as "Doctor Who" and "The EastEnders" are also expected to be available on Bebo. Top UK Social Site Bebo Brings in Broadcasters Bebo was founded in 2005 by Michael Birch and his wife Xochi, who have turned down several offers to sell the firm. The twenty-two major media partnerships Bebo has announced are likely to propel it into new and uncharted territory, where 40 million current users will be watching closely to see just how much more growth the company will experience. Related Links:
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11:43 pm on Nov. 14, 2007 (utc 0)
