A very happy Christmas from all of us here at WebsEdge.

Being our first Christmas as WebsEdge we’ve decided to do something a bit diferent. Instead of sending out the usual gifts to all our friends we’re supporting Isibindi projects in South Africa’s Eastern Cape. As many of you will know Isibindi is Zulu for courage. Isibindi’s are partnerships between the local church and the National Association of Child Care Workers to create circles of care for children affected by HIV/AIDS and poverty. Three such projects are now in operation in the villages of Illinge, Ezebeleni and Alice. Each project has a small building and safe park where children can play freely, receive support, learn, receive understanding and care.

So this year we’re donating money to buy playground equipment for the children of Alice. As producers of global health tv we feel this is particularly appropriate for us and hope to build further links as time goes on. Indeed, we even hope to film some of our programmes there later in the year. I’ll be posting updates of how we get on here on the blog so stay tuned!

The revolution we’re all currently witnessing in television production and disemination is certainly making the world a smaller place. We can all access information that interests us from all round the world whenever we want it. At WebsEdge we also think that places a responsibility on us to do whatever we can to help where help’s needed.

Happy Christmas!

How often have you heard the phrase ‘content is king’? That may be so but don’t you just get the feeling that there’s too much choice out there. You may be able to record programmes at will but there often isn’t the time to watch them all back. And even user-generated content loses its appeal when it’s been sat on the shelf for a while.

Now don’t get me wrong. Here at WebsEdge we’re duly proud of all the programming we make. But in my view we’re all making it hard work for consumers to find what they want to watch when they want it.

Yesterday, I came across this recent NewTeeVee post which cites data from an online survey covering the general public’s views on IPTV. NewTeeVee summarizes the data suggesting that people access online video content in numerous ways, but none of which are quite satisfactory.

Viewers are looking for videos they’ll enjoy; content that is relevant and suited to their specific interests. Unfortunately, users are not yet satisfied with the ability to find the specific content they want.

The survey results show over half (56%) of online viewers find their videos by browsing sites, while around 1/3 find them through search engines. Although NewTeeVee seemed surprised by this difference, to me it makes sense. IPTV has begun its evolution, but the viewers aren’t yet ready to change their habits.

The ability to search for videos is something that viewers have never had in a conventional television environment. Browsing websites is basically the online equivalent of channel surfing. There has never been a way to sit on the couch and search for your interests and now that this exists online, people are having trouble adapting.

Part of IPTV’s innovation will be not only the evolution of the way people watch TV, but the way the find their programmes. For IPTV to blossom, viewers’ habits will begin to evolve as well, enabling a more fully functional spectrum of television.

We all now know the importance of climate change. But whilst so much has been said many would argue precious little has actually been done. So I was really pleased to see two great examples this week of public sector organisations tackling the issue head on. And even happier to see web tv making a positive contribution to the debate.

Local Government in the UK doesn’t have the best of reputations. But believe it or not it actually leads in many areas. And this week in Leicester it’s joining with a number of politicians from all parties to launch the Local Government Association’s Climate Change Commission. And most importantly the organisation is asking all delegates to come up with one key action for their community which will make a difference in the coming year.

You can catch all the news from the conference on the local government channel. By the way, if you were going to the conference what would your action be?

Moving to a global level I was delighted to read this week that the United Nations will be webcasting their upcoming Climate Summit Conference, dubbed Virtual Bali, in an effort to minimise the event’s carbon footprint. The stream will also be available through Second Life, to give viewers a chance at virtual attendance and the ability to interact with other attendees. By offering the event online, the 15,000 general attendees will be able to view from afar without needing to travel, drastically reducing emissions from flights. Plus, it being streamed through Second Life adds a social networking component to its online video, allowing viewers to comment and communicate regarding issues they find most important.

This broadcast will come just weeks after the UN’s previous announcement of moving into the digital age, through its YouTube contest which is challenging users to create viral campaigns to spread the awareness of the global hunger crisis. Basically, I’m impressed. The coverage starts today and runs through 14 December, and can be found on the Virtual Bali web channel. To me this is web tv at its very best. Helping to bring the key issues of our time to a global audience. And just as important giving that audience the opportunity - perhaps for the first time - to interact with the policy makers to bring about real change.