US broadcast network, CBS, is tapping user-generated video to honor retiring "The Price is Right" host, Bob Barker. The network's CBS Interactive arm is inviting viewers to submit 15-second video tributes to the gameshow host via a dedicated group (http://youtube.com/group/15seconds) on YouTube. Every two weeks, it will select five of those videos and showcase them on its CBS.com Web site; it will then use a selection of those videos as promos for "The Price is Right," and will also air them during a daytime episode of the gameshow and during a May 17th primetime special, entitled "Bob Barker: A Celebration of 50 Years on Television."
The Bob Barker tribute, which CBS has dubbed "15 Seconds: A Salute to Bob," is the second promotion undertaken by the broadcaster as part of a user-generated video initiative entitled "15 Seconds," that was announced by its president and CEO, Les Moonves, during his CES keynote presentation. The first 15 Seconds promotion, which began in January, saw the broadcaster inviting viewers to post 15-second inspirational messages on any topic of their choosing to the initiative's dedicated YouTube group; since then, it has been airing a selection of the viewer-submitted videos on its TV network throughout the season at pre-announced intervals. The first "15 Seconds" video to air on the network was broadcast on February 4th prior as part of CBS Sports' daytime coverage of the Super Bowl.
Originally Published: April 16, 2007 in [itvt] Issue 7.26 Part 3
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