Cónde Nast’s upcoming MySpace competitor, Flip, which we blogged about before, is taking user control a step further. Users will be able to use advertiser images in “Flip booksâ€, which is the way that Flip users express themselves. This from MediaWeek’s coverage:
Thus far, CondéNet, the Web arm of Condé Nast, has signed on five premiere sponsors for Flip—which officially goes live on Feb. 6—including PacSun, Nordstrom, Clean & Clear and Vera Wang. While CondéNet executives won’t say how much ad revenue the new site is commanding, sources familiar with the negotiations said packages were being offered between $300,000 to $500,000. Those numbers indicate the site is likely to pull in close to $2 million before launch.
So basically, you could put in an ad on a brand you dislike, and write that you hate it, since the advertiser’s apparently have gone in 100% to CondéNet’s Flip vision:
For example, retailer Nordstrom is supplying images of models wearing its apparel that girls can paste in their Flip books, which can only be identified as Nordstrom-wear if users click on them. Johnson & Johnson’s Clean & Clear is taking it a step further by simply providing word-play icons—such as “FRESHâ€â€”while displaying neither a logo nor its products.
The concept is interesting and this kind of freedom might be what makes Flip a worthy challenger to MySpace. Or maybe it won’t, it’s definitely too early to say since the site isn’t going live until February 6.
Oh, and yes, there will be traditional banners as well, but even there the users are in power. They get to pick which ones are displayed on their pages. That’s an even better idea if you ask me, something that perhaps blog-focused ad networks should delve into.
Check out flip.com, closed to non-beta people of course, and MediaWeek’s excellent coverage.
Hat tip: Photo Matt
Originally posted on February 2, 2007 @ 5:13 am