Can CNN, the Go-to Site, Get You to Stay?

CNN.com ranks first in news and the site is trying to extend that reach through more experimental forays

New York Times, January 18, 2009 — K. C. ESTENSON, the new general manager of CNN.com, has a thought or two about most news sites on the Web: they’re predictable and homogeneous. Seen one, seen ’em all.

Even his own site, he says, could use more of a “unique signature.”

While traffic to the home page of CNN.com is higher than ever, “my hunch is that people go to it more out of habit than they do out of love,” he says. Love, in fact, is exactly what Mr. Estenson is pursuing.

Innovation In a Recession: Necessary and All the More Possible

By Jennifer Dominiquini

Prophet, January 1, 2009 — While it is tempting to cut resources, slow down product launches, and refocus only on the core, companies that continue their commitment to innovation are more likely to reap great rewards.

Web Site’s Formula for Success: TV Content With Fewer Ads

New York Times, October 29, 2008 — “THUMBS up” and “thumbs down” ratings for commercials. Choose-your-own-advertisement options before shows begin. Interactive games during advertising breaks.

In the last year these online advertising innovations have been popularized by Hulu, the online video Web site that will celebrate its first anniversary on Wednesday. For all that has been written about Hulu’s easy-to-use, aesthetically pleasing interface, the advertising experience is equally important.

In the place of the long commercial pods that TV viewers have become accustomed to, only one ad is shown during each segment break on Hulu. Fewer ads make the ones on the site more memorable, Hulu executives say, allowing the site to charge higher prices for the ad units.

CNN Goes Virtual With Launch of News Bureau in Second Life

Mediaweek, October 29, 2007 — As news organizations slash budgets and scale back bureaus, CNN is expanding—except not in real life. In the week of Nov. 5, the news giant is set to open a news-gathering outpost in Second Life. And unlike news service Reuters, which embedded a real reporter in the online virtual world last year, CNN will rely on Second Life “residents” to do all the legwork.