CARLSBAD, California -- The video search firm that allowed Internet users to sift through President Clinton's Lewinsky testimony will make a big chunk of ABC's programming searchable on the Web.
By giving viewers instant Internet access to any part of a sportscast, news program, soap opera, or talk show, Virage said it expects to boost viewer loyalty, nurture new online communities, and create new electronic commerce opportunities for ABC.
"It's a very different way of deploying the same (video resources) on the Web," said Carlos Montalvo, Virage's vice president of marketing. "The Internet is not a brochure to advertise your material. It's not a form of one-way broadcast communication. It's a unique channel on its own."
ABC could not be reached for comment.
The deal, revealed Tuesday at the EnterTech conference here, is the first of several major media licensing arrangements expected from the San Mateo, California, company.
"Video has always been a second-class citizen on the Web," Montalvo said. "It's the last remaining major land grab."
The technology is already being used by a number of Fortune 1000 companies, as well as government and military organizations, to track and tabulate vast video archives. Web portal AltaVista also uses Virage's software to catalog video.
The company charges a licensing fee for its software or shares revenues from advertising or electronic commerce generated by a Virage-enabled site.
Founded in 1994, Virage was built on core technology developed at the MIT Media Lab and the University of Michigan. Investors include Hambrecht & Quist, Sutter Hill, and Compaq.
