MTV Networks, and Internet video specialist ROO, today announced a partnership to offer a best-in-breed video player and customizable video channels to the more than 500 online college newspapers in mtvU’s College Publisher network.
Each of the network’s student-run publications will now have free access to a customizable, private-label video player and a wide variety of on-demand content channels — including news, sports and entertainment from leading providers such as The Associated Press, Reuters and many other leading brands. The ROO content team closely with mtvU to develop and secure new original video exclusively for this growing network. The ROO player will also enable the online student papers to distribute their own video content, or to partner with a university’s TV station to make its programming available worldwide.
The video players will be individually branded to reflect the look and feel of each college newspaper site, integrate seamlessly with a paper’s online edition and be powered by the ROO Video Exchange (VX) platform. Publications that install the plug-and-play applications will also be able to capitalize on a new video advertising revenue stream. With the addition of online video, and several other recently introduced multi-media features, today mtvU also announces the re-naming of College Publisher to the College Media Network.
“Partnering with ROO reflects our commitment to empower student publications with cutting-edge digital tools that benefit their readers, business and staff,” said Stephen Friedman, GM, mtvU. “This video platform unlocks new creative possibilities and sources of revenue for our affiliates and will enable them to continue inventing the newsroom of tomorrow - with the College Media Network as their laboratory.”
“College students are probably the most discriminating, demanding and sophisticated consumers of video in the market today,” said Robert Petty, CEO of ROO. “They watch online video more than any other group and their expectations for content and technical quality are extraordinarily high. Our vast, ever expanding content library and our unique technology platform ensure that the College Media Network will be able to offer up video channels of the most dynamic content that will draw even more students around the country to the newspaper sites.”
While the name of mtvU’s online college newspaper network will be new, the content management solution used by campus publications nationwide will keep the College Publisher title. The College Publisher platform is the only online publishing system designed specifically for college newspapers. The Web-based suite of tools allows multiple users to control all facets of digital publishing, including content management, multimedia administration and online advertising.
In August 2006, mtvU acquired Y2M: Youth Media & Marketing Networks, the parent company of College Publisher. Since the acquisition, the network has grown from 450 campus publications to 510, and now serves institutions with a combined enrollment of over 5.5 million students, reaching an average of 5 million unique users each month.
