Another new player has entered the rich media publishing arena. This one, though, is staffed with veterans of successful cable television campaigns and plans to publish a host of brand-safe sites, writes the New York Times.
The company, called Next New Networks, was founded by former executives from MTV, Nickelodeon and others and is aimed at building networks of users passionate about a particular niche topic. They'll build what are being called "micro-networks" around such topics as comic books, cartoons and others.

Those networks would host rich media, such as streaming video, that is professionally produced and therefore a safer bet for advertisers than the consumer-generated videos on other sites. User-submitted videos will be solicited but will be screened before appearing on the site.

This sort of niche targeting is, essentially, a replica of how cable television began, and the founders are hoping they'll have similar success. By providing a safe haven for advertisers, the approach could also have the effect of making other sites such as YouTube less attractive to advertisers.

Next Now is launching with just six networks but has plans to build that out to 30 in the next two years, possibly reaching 100 five years out.