ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS...SMIL (That's right... SMIL)

Did I get your attention? I hope so because we need to
talk about SMIL and how its use can turn your streaming media
presentations into television-like experiences for your web visitors.
SMIL (pronounced "smile") stands for Synchronized
Multimedia Integration Language and was developed by the W3C
Synchronized Multimedia (SYMM) Working Group to allow the
synchronization of audio, video, text and graphics in web based
presentations. It was expressly developed to enhance the quality of
streaming media and can support multiple types of data, compression
algorithms, and bandwidth environments. It was designed so that
anyone familiar with HTML and some XML commands could employ it
to create television like presentations.

Philipp Hoschka, Chairman of the W3C group and editor of
the SMIL specifications says: "...the Web lacks a simple way to
express synchronization over time, for example, 'play audio file
A in parallel with video file B' or 'show image C after audio
file A has finished playing.' SMIL enables this type of
information to be expressed quite easily, allowing television-like
content to be created..."*

I hear you asking yourselves "what does this technospeak
have to do with me?" If you create web based advertising and
would like to offer your clients a compelling new way to deliver
it, this has a lot to do with you. If you're a website owner
longing for a means to showcase your products and services with
economical elegance, this has a lot to do with you, too.

Why? Because the Web is inherently interactive and
visitors can follow the links imbedded in a SMIL presentation
directly to your website. There they can obtain additional information
or, more importantly, be taken directly to an order form for the
product or service described in that presentation. "Users can
switch from 'couch potato' mode into interactive mode with a simple
mouse click," says Mr. Hoschka.

Let's talk about how you can put SMIL to work for you.

In the entertainment industry? An entertainer wants his
visitors to know where and when he'll be performing. Scroll the
schedule of his club dates next to the window playing a video clip
of his specialty. As he sets his performance schedule for
future dates, the clip can be quickly updated to reflect this.
Include some text ads from the clubs involved, give their "live"
URL's, and let them help pay for the production!

Selling real estate? Photos or slides taken with a
digital camera can be coordinated with an audio commentary and
text. Tell your potential clients about the geographic area,
the schools, recreational opportunities and transportation
situation. Place commercial messages from merchants in the area,
with live links to their websites, into the presentation and
generate additional revenue to defray some of the costs.

Are you in the training business? Courses can be
devised which integrate voice and images. Live links can be
introduced to take the students to other sites and information
pertinent to the material being taught. Keep updated company
policies online and couple them with news items and other
materials relevant to the employees. Motivational trainers can use text,
audio, and video to sell their training materials when their
audience is most inclined to buy!

Doing e-commerce? Show photos of the product range with
an audio track talking about each product as it appears. Use
this in conjunction with text to take your visitors directly to the order
form for the product while they're anxious and motivated to
purchase.

Work with other merchants of complementary products;
generate revenue by placing ads for their goods throughout your
presentation.

Offering a service? Slide presentations can be timed so
that bullet points come up in sequence on the screen at specified
time intervals. These could change color as the presenter moves from
point to point. Testimonials could scroll as you discuss your customer
satisfaction policies. Restaurants could show a clip of the chef
preparing his "signature" meal while the recipe is read or scrolled
for the visitor.

I've talked about Rich Media, of which streaming and
SMIL are integral components, in many articles. (See:
http://www.wbcimaging.com/articlesbyexperts.htm) Now
Rich Media is in the spotlight as traditional advertisers, losing
faith in the "tried and true" banner advertising campaign, start
to hop aboard the streaming bandwagon.

As these advertisers shift their emphasis from banner
click-thrus to ads that that are specifically used for branding,
greater emphasis will be placed on Rich Media. With Rich Media, there
are numerous opportunities to present the complexities of branding
that cannot be done with static banners - greater interactivity,
sound, motion, and the ability to display creatives in a larger space.
As this occurs, SMIL will become the key to making these ad
campaigns an entertaining and "smooth as television" experience.

I'd like you to think about television news. It's pretty
straightforward; information about the events of the
day. But the sophisticated audiences of today demand more than
just "talking heads" on their television screens. So the
news is packaged as entertainment, with music and graphics to
grab the eyes and ears of the viewer. When advertisers
realize that web surfers are seeking this same experience, there will
be a rush to duplicate this on the Internet.

Then, all you have to do is...SMIL.