Today, JibJab launched a joke-sharing online social network called JokeBox. JibJab founders Evan and Gregg Spiridellis were inspired by their father, a frequent email jokster, to create this hub for storing and sharing jokes of any media persuasion. The site has been in private beta-testing for three months, during which time roughly 40,000 registered members have contributed 25,000 written jokes, photos, audio and video files.
The Spiridellis brothers readily admit they see JokeBox as a necessary secondary revenue stream for JibJab Media, their animation studio famous for the "This Land" short, which has been downloaded over 65 million times. They run their shop pretty lean, with only 7 staff, so there are long lags between projects. In fact, Jokebox.com redirects to JibJab.com, so JokeBox is the online face for JibJab Media.
Beyond savings and sharing content, JokeBox lets you send messages within the network, establish friends, and create message groups called "fan clubs." Much like YouTube , the video sharing site du jour, you can browse the content by "Top Rated Jokes" or "Most Viewed Jokes," which make the content much more accessible in the 10 seconds you have to grab a user's attention. Basically, they have covered the online social networking fundamentals. After playing a round a little, I don't see any new functionality.
BudLight has banner throughout the site and either a mantle or skyscraper placement within the site,. Other advertisers including Benadryl and the Suburban Auto Group Ford/Chevy car dealership also have placements in the JibJab video shorts, which are prominently featured within the site.
If you click on any of the ads, you get to download any of the current "Real Men of Genius" television or radio ads, which feature the character Ted Ferguson competing in a competitions like "going shopping with your girlfriend." Once you click on the link, you have to re-enter your birthdate, even if you are signed in. That's a little annoying and will certainly reduce conversion rates, but you can't mess with those legal requirements.
The value proposition for a JokeBox member is that he or she can more easily find, store and share funny content with their friends rather than trying to manage it with folders in their inboxes. This network gives these humor hobbyists a vehicle to become their own media channel, similar to YouTube.
JibJab certainly has couple strengths that make JokeBox less risky:
- it has the name recognition to grab significant earned media attention without have to buy online ads;
- with already 645,000 enthusiasts, split evenly across gender, subscribed to their newsletter, there is enough of a passionate base that will take the time to try site; and
- it is an underdog company, like Apple or Mozilla, that will appeal to the technophiles, who can give a site life after launch.
It remains to be seen if JokeBox can separate itself from YouTube enough to provide a unique value or it just becomes a re-posting of hits from YouTube. Also, do humor hobbyists have enough of an affinity with each other to turn JokeBox into an online humor hotspot? Will they seek each other out online and make this site competitive -- like antiquing or finding a great shirt at a thrift store?
Legacy Comments
The JibJab JokeBox is more of a joke than the jokes in it. They have not made it into a social network, but a clique which is run by an eleite group that Evan and Gregg chose called the "A_hole Patrol". The entire site is juvenile and sophomoric, but the worst part is that they are censoring people whom they deem to be threats for any reason (not for offensive materials.. but for reasons that are in their agenda.. isch as the fact that the contest was a sham!). They kick people out (ban them) without any warning... then send mass emails slandering the people so that others believe what they said is true.
It is definitely a hostile environment where people are either banned (kicked out) or are afraid to tell what they know for fear they too will be banned. In the meantime, the elite "A_hole Patrol" is allowed to have offensive and sexually explicit stuff in their Jokeboxes! Others are banned for no true reason. They simply were afraid of the bad publicity they would get if the truth be told about the so-called contest.
As for the winner and the banned people, there is currently litigation about this whole thing with the District Attorney's Office.
in the meantime, Gregg and Evan and friends think they have pulled the wool over everyone's eyes. They have a potential movie contract and Bud Light commercial deals. They stand to lose money over this, while others lose their good reputation to protect JibJab.
One person lost the $5,000 prize money because of irregularities and other things. Another simply was banned because she knew what was going on and they wanted to ruin her reputation before the press got hold of this!
It's sad what fame and greed does to people who had such potential....