by Gary Welz, Tangent Design
EntertainNet
Marimba, the Webcasting service founded by some of the original Sun Microsystems Java development team, is now offering about a dozen channels of multimedia content.The Marimba "transmitter" pushes everything from applications to CD-ROM-like programming to each subscriber's Marimba "tuner"--a multimedia viewer/channel selector. The tuner can be freely downloaded from the Marimba site and will be built into Netscape's Constellation, due to be released in the Spring.
Current Marimba channels include the Sesame Street KidSite Channel; the MapQuest Channel, which offers worldwide map coverage; the Commentary Channel, which features expert opinions on everything; the Crossword Channel; and Astrology.Net.
One of the most innovative channels is EntertainNet, which offers original entertainment programming including Disco-Rama, an irreverent look at the 1970s; Claudia Boulevard, in which comedienne Claudia Lonow gives her own wry perspective on being a woman in Hollywood; and the Golden Turkey Awards, a whimsical awards show similar in temperament to the 1960s Rowan and Martin Laugh-in "Fickle Finger of Fate Award."
Games from companies such as Smart Games, Inc. are coming soon along with syndicated programming from other producers.
EntertainNet's CEO Steve Damron describes his service as an entertainment version of PointCast. Viewing the programs is rather like watching a five meg CD-ROM. They can be slick, attractive, amusing, and fast-moving.
The programming produced by EntertainNet is similar to independent film, Off-Off Broadway, the Apollo theater, comedy clubs, and public access TV. It offers talented people with small budgets an opportunity to reach an audience. The premium is on the talent, not the production values or the bandwidth. The difference between this and other forms with a low barrier to entry is that the Internet allows the creators to reach a global audience.
The ease of authoring is also a significant factor in making this medium accessible to the best talent. EntertainNet's programs are produced using Macromedia's Shockwave and Dimension X's new Java-based Liquid Motion Pro tool.
Steve Damron told me that the content a particular user receives will be tailored to his or her preferences and behavior. The producers will be able to determine users' behavior by tracking the click streams, caching it on users' hard drives, and sending it back to the Marimba server the next time the users reconnect. The software's ability to report back to its maker how it's being used is one of the more remarkable things that Java makes possible--rather like putting a spy in every user's computer.
EntertainNet will make its revenue selling interactive ads that will be integrated into the programs. The company is developing relationships with the Internet bookstore, Amazon.com, and other online shops.
EntertainNet is one of the 16 companies created in celebrated entrepreneur Bill Gross's Idealab--a developer of Internet companies that has spawned CitySearch, Answers.com, and The Idea Market, among others.
