NYTimes.com announced today the launch of its first paid streaming video product, TimesTalks Online.
The video product is a selection of Critic's Choice events held in New York City as part of "Arts & Leisure Weekend'' on January 10-13, 2002 to commemorate The New York Times's 150th anniversary. NYTimes.com also expanded the "Topics in Depth'' paid collections, adding articles selected by Times columnists Maureen Dowd and Frank Rich, and added a second "Editor's Pick'' paid multimedia collection that features Best Pictures from 1929 to 2002.
TimesTalks Online videos feature New York Times critics in candid conversations with some of America's greatest innovators in literature, television, film and music. Descriptions with free sample clips may be found at NYTimes.com/criticschoice. The videos include:
Martin Scorsese discussing his favorite movies and his portrayal of New York in his films, with Times critic Janet Maslin.
Peter Jennings of ABC's "World News Tonight'' and Jon Stewart of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show'' looking at the state of news and satire with Times television critic Julie Salamon.
David Chase, creator of the hit HBO series "The Sopranos,'' discussing his influences and the creative process with Times chief television critic Caryn James, and why Tony Soprano is so likeable.
John Irving explaining why he prefers a third person narration and the differences between memory and imagination with Bill Goldstein, books editor of NYTimes.com.
Lou Reed talking with Times music critic Jon Pareles about his music career, his first guitar and why he believes he was made to rock.
Will Shortz, editor of The Times crossword puzzles, offering his insight on the rules and clueing readers into his all-time favorite puzzles.
Each Critic's Choice event is approximately one hour long and is subdivided into segments ranging from 4 to 17 minutes. Each event is priced at $5.95 and all six events can be purchased as a bundle for $19.95.
"Critic's Choice was a huge success with everyone who was lucky enough to get in to these sold-out events,'' said Alyse Myers, vice president, Marketing Services, The New York Times. "Now, by making these events available as streaming video on NYTimes.com, we are expanding the reach of the events to a national and international audience.''
NYTimes.com also launched additional Topics in Depth, collections of archived articles on a specific topic or writer that are priced at $4.95 each. Topics in Depth first launched in late 2001 with articles by Times columnists Thomas Friedman and William Safire. Found at NYTimes.com/topicsindepth, the newest Topics include:
-- Maureen Dowd on Women
-- Frank Rich on America in the Aftermath
-- Computer Pioneers
-- Pulitzer Prize-Winning Fiction Since 1990
-- Mysteries of the Universe
-- Filmmakers at the Movies
-- Talking Money
In addition, NYTimes.com recently launched its newest premium Editors' Pick, "Best Pictures: Oscar Winners in The Times, 1929-2002'' on NYTimes.com/editorspicks. Editors' Picks are mini-sites that showcase the full breadth of the New York Times content on a particular subject while leveraging the Web's multimedia capabilities. The feature includes reviews of all the Best Picture winners, more than 100 related articles such as Marlon Brando's unfinished Oscar speech in 1972, and audio commentary by Times film critic A.O. Scott.
"This week marks a significant milestone for our premium content strategy," said Scott Meyer, vice president and general manager of NYTimes.com. "The launch of our first paid streaming video product, the expansion of Topics in Depth, and the introduction of Best Pictures represent the next step in our efforts to package and merchandise archival content that can only be found on NYTimes.com."
About New York Times Digital
New York Times Digital is the digital business unit of The New York Times Company (NYSE:NYT - news) and includes market leaders NYTimes.com and Boston.com, and an archive distribution business. NYTD's mission is to provide a high-quality, worldwide online audience with trusted editorial content from The New York Times and The Boston Globe.