Bebo opens its doors to media brands

Nov 14, 2007 by Dirk Singer

Following on from the last post about brands increasingly using social networks over campaign micro-sites, comes the news today (reported here in the Hollywood Reporter) about Bebo opening its doors to media groups, through its Open Media platform.

An initial batch of media partners, including the BBC, Yahoo, CBS, MTV and Sony, will be able to provide content through their own channels at no charge, which users can then post and share.

The Hollywood Reporter talks about this being another move in the social network becoming more of a media player. Last year, Bebo launched an interactive drama called KateModern, and a reality show called “The Gap Year” is currently being made with Endemol. Last year, Bebo Bands was launched followed by Bebo Authors earlier this year, both giving a showcase to performers and writers.

Nielsen / Netratings figures in September showed that Bebo has 4.5 million UK registrations, behind MySpace (6.4 million) and Facebook (6.5 million). Bebo’s audience profile is more weighted towards 15-24 year olds compared to the other two networks.