I had a chance to talk to some people at permissionTV. They have some really nice services and software. In particular I was very interested in their PDK, Permission TV Platform Development Kit. It made me think of think specifically of the pros/cons between paying to license something like this or building on an open source project like JV FLV Media Player.

I've been having some interesting conversations with Jolie O'Dell and Mary Fahncke about the role of new media, in particular in traditional DRTV companies. We've been sharing some link love and you can see links to their sites at the blog/vlog rolls at the bottom of the Hawthorne Videoactive Report.

This is a really weird move for Taco Bell.  The content doesn't really relate but the implementation is cool.  You can pick locations and limited actions for the model and then proceed to take your own takeaway photographs from the the shoot.  The controls are limited to zooming in and cropping, but the play control sells through.  I can't help but notice it looks remarkably close the the Pokemon game that came out for 64 awhile back.  Check it out:
http://www.directdaniella.com/
 
 

There's a long tradition among news gatherers to hoodwink readers, listeners, and viewers on this day with some sort of bogus news story that seems "close, but not quite." Because we're all well-conditioned to treat stories on this day with some skepticism, it's pretty harmless fun for the most part.
 
When writing today's Videoactive Report, I considered continuing the tradition. Only problem was, every story I dreamed up didn't seem so far-fetched. More to the point, it seems I run something at least once a month that I greet with extreme doubt at first glance.

Tim got a new webcam yesterday so we had fun testing some of the free videoconferencing systems like Tokbox, Oovoo and Skype. View this post to see a recording of part of our Oovoo conference. My impression is that Videoconferencing has come a long way since I've last tried it, especially in how easy it is to get it set up and get working. However, audio and video quality is still hit or miss, especially on the Internet.

Last evening I conducted a Hawthorne Videoactive Report TV interview with John Yarrington, Publisher of Response Magazine, about his new web site www.asseenonresponsetv.com. John and Adam Carrillo, Response's National Account Executive, braved canceled flights, lost luggage and a 5 hour car trip from Chicago to Fairfield, Iowa in time for dinner and a fascinating demo of their exciting new venture. 
 

Today we're starting a Hawthorne Direct blog -- all the news and views on integrated response advertising from our Hawthorne staff, that's fit to post.