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MTV Games Launches
Via Kotaku, the news that MTV Games has launched. The site already has a few features up, including a (juvenile) look at the next Tomb Raider title. At the moment, the site appears to be almost entirely a rebranding of Gamespot content, right down to the news feed.
This is great, maybe I can download videos of BloodRayne singing my favorite Goth/EmoMetal songs. Or Backyard Wrestling characters lipsynching to [mallpunk band of the week].
Video Mods is the worst idea I've ever heard.
..a vapid, annoying, extreme-poseur version of an MTV-style games entity, complete with useless "reality" programming that has nothing to do with the product in question, existed already as G4?
Ok, so here's the deal with MTV (as I see it).
Back when cable was new and fancy, cable channels were based around topics. MTV=Music, CNN=News, Discovery Channel=Science, etc. I think they did it this way because many cable channels were commercial free, so advertising demographics wasn't a real concern.
However, as cable TV has evolved, companies like Viacom (who own a whole bunch of cable TV channels) have starting selling ads, and have realized that it's easier to sell advertising when you have a clearly segmented market. Want to sell your [compact car|acne medication|mobile phone plan] to 12-28 year olds? MTV is just what you're looking for. That's why there are no music videos anymore...it's all programming directed at teenage/twenties/early 30s hipsters who care about Paris Hilton, extreme sports, and what car J-Lo is driving this week.
That's also why The Learning Channel has turned into the Home Improvement Reality Show channel (a.k.a the 18-34, married, middle-class channel). It's all about segmenting your market so that you have a consistent product (eyeballs) to sell.