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Cyber-Soap Returns From The Dead

Posted by timothy on from the shoot-me-now dept.

An anonymous reader submits "Back in 1995, an experimental "cyber-soap" had a wildly successful launch. With over a million page hits a day (an almost unheard-of amount of traffic at the time), The Spot was named "Cool Site of the Year" in 1995, and by all appearances was a huge success. As was the case for many projects of the time, though, by 1997 The Spot was gone, another victim of the dot-com bust. However, unlike other dot-com projects, The Spot has been given new life, un der new ownership, and was relaunched in March. Can the Spot, a unique blend of soap opera, blog, and reality show, survive this time around, or is it doomed to end up back in the graveyard of failed websites in which it was first buried seven years ago?"

7 of 156 comments (clear)

  1. Hit or miss.. by DakotaK · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The way Americans love their reality entertainment, it'll soar in theory. However, I doubt it goes far for one simple reason: nobody will have heard of it. Can't beat American Idol if nobody knows about it.

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    I am a viral sig. Please copy me and help me spread. Thank you.
    1. Re:Hit or miss.. by stefanlasiewski · · Score: 4, Funny

      A low-budget viral marketing plan for The Spot:

      1. Get a frontpage story on Slashdot. *check*
      2. ...

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      "Can of worms? The can is open... the worms are everywhere."
  2. Died for a reason by jmusits · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I think it's pretty obvious why this site died a few years back. Just remember that history is destined to repeat itself.

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  3. Accurate? by cubicledrone · · Score: 4, Insightful

    by 1997 The Spot was gone, another victim of the dot-com bust.

    The dot-com bust in 1997? Huh?

    Love them hype-journalism phrases. "Dot-com bubble" and "dot-com bust" are used to explain every negative event in technology.

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    Business isn't willing to pay for products, innovation and careers, so we get brands, mortgage commercials and layoffs.
  4. This is how far I got by Borg453b · · Score: 5, Funny

    "..By reading these words, you are already part of the story. How involved you want to become is completely up to you...

    Yep. *Closes browser*

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    - Mad, ingenous - they've both left you puzzled -
  5. Message to 1995 by ciroknight · · Score: 4, Funny

    Dear 1995,

    We do not want this. Please take it back. We have enough reality TV shows as it is, who in the HELL would want them on the internet???
    Signed,
    Conserned Slashdotter.

    PS, please tell Al Gore "Thanks for your brilliant contributions".

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    "Victory means exit strategy, and it's important for the President to explain to us what the exit strategy is." G.W.Bush
  6. Product placement goes "reality show"... by janbjurstrom · · Score: 4, Interesting

    As if inane, trite blogs/boards/et al., weren't enough - now we're going to get hordes of semi-produced/casted business versions...

    I spent all of 5 minutes browsing the spot, and it was blatantly obvoius that most "post" we're little more than product placements. "Amanda" "hears" about how [swedish retailer of semi-disposable furniture]'s got some great(!) stuff - going there now!! The "Kai" character takes up surfing - i.e. goes to a named and praised surf shop (link+logo included of course), the guys at shop X we're awesome!!

    So, this is apparantly business' take du jour, on the latest mainstream trends online - we get the likes of the spot and the subservient-chicken. Viral marketing ey? Well, let's start spraying some virus-killing poison then.

    I'm so reminded of the ad agency in Gibson's Pattern Recognition it's not even funny.

    Wherever and whenever real people try (and do) find each other in - to them - meaningful ways, you can be goddammed sure that advertising leeches will find a way to nestle their way in between them. Gotta get yer earnin' on.

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