. . . streaming video for the law office (sm)
[American Webcast logo]

Webcast Gallery | Monthly Column | Competitive Research | Action Plan | Contact Us | Help


Webcasting 101: TV on Your PC
by Kendall Callas
Glad you could join us again for this month’s investigation of “streaming video” within the legal community, that is, how law firms are using webcasting — video over the World Wide Web.

Today we are live at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco! ... The crowd is feeling the excitement as the noise and commotion build to a fever pitch! Keep your eyes open (you never know what might happen); if you blink you’ll miss it. Just sit back and try to keep out of the way — you know how crazy live presentations can get!

WHAT’S ON TONIGHT?

Bingham McCutchen (www.bingham.com) has over 800 attorneys in a dozen offices in California, New York, Connecticut, Boston, Washington, DC, London, and Tokyo, with expertise ranging over 40 practice areas.

The firm’s Securities Regulation Group hosted a breakfast meeting with Bill Lockyer, California Attorney General, on November 11, 2004. To reach viewers who couldn’t attend the San Francisco event, it was webcast live and continues to be available at

“Securities Regulation Breakfast with Attorney General Bill Lockyer” (90 minutes)
[play
button]http://www.netroadshow.com/custom/bingham/firmMeeting2004.htm

According to Patricia Daniels, the firm’s Director of Business Development and Marketing, based in New York City, the event was a huge success. “The nature of this event was ideally suited for a webcast.... We scored a coup by attracting a prestigious regional figure with a national message, but the presentation was local, and we wanted the audience to include our national client base.”

GOALS

Goals included “client education, and the enhancement of our reputation as a significant national firm in the securities regulation space.”

Feedback from clients has been very positive. Anecdotal evidence suggests that the event delivered on its promise to “strengthen client relationships, and enhance our reputation as a firm with strong national reach.”

During the event, questions were taken from the live audience at the Commonwealth Club, and 20 or so questions came in nationwide via e-mail.

PROBLEMS

Of course, there were the usual logistical problems. “Available or appropriate venues were not set up for webcasting, and the webcasting vendor had to install and then remove the T-1 lines. There was a hotel strike on in San Francisco, and we needed a venue that would not subject our featured speaker, one of the senior elected officials in California government, to crossing picket lines. If we had a choice, we'd have done it at a major hotel.”

There were technical problems, too: “The [web] registration forms were set up in popups, and popup blocker software interfered with many of our invitees’ ability to self-register.”

Her advice to other law firms: “Think beyond the typical PR you might do with a local event. Offering this on a national basis created many more opportunities than we would normally have.”

LIVE OR TAPED?

Just like TV, an event or presentation may be webcast live, or it may be taped for later replay “on-demand.” In either case, the viewing experience begins with a click on a link from a website page or e-mail message. The choice involves major tradeoffs:

Live webcast:
Live coverage makes a meeting into an event! The presence of cameras injects a sense of significance. If it’s covered live, it must be important! This adds marketing pizzaz, and heightens the electricity of the moment. Major disadvantages: Risk of flubs or Internet congestion. Also, since the camera is tethered to a computer and communications line, in practice the shoot is limited to a single location. Consequently, a live webcast cannot handle much camera movement, and outdoors coverage is difficult.

Taped webcast:
Recorded events are safer, and less risky. They can be edited which is a huge advantage. Flaws can be removed; music, titles, and effects may be added. The final cut can use the best of multiple takes, mix scenes/locations/backgrounds, and “color correction” can reduce some of the limitations of video.

Taping is much easier and more flexible, initially requiring only a camera. You can shoot footage, then edit it into an “on-demand” webcast. Even difficult events such as a boat ride, baseball game, or tour are not a problem. Because editing can improve footage enormously, taped webcasts typically provide a much higher quality viewing experience.

In sum, live events have an immediacy and realism that magnifies their impact. By their nature, however, live events cannot be edited — the broadcast is raw, flubs and all. Taped events can be improved by deleting or re-recording the bad parts, inter-cutting scenes, and by adding graphics, music, text, etc. Webcasting live increases equipment requirements, raising costs; editing improves quality and control but may add cost and delay to taped webcasts.

Certain events lend themselves to live coverage, others are best taped for “on-demand” viewing:

  • Morrison & Foerster webcast a seminar about the CAN-SPAM law in January, 2003. Over 400 people participated in a live webcast which broadcast audio and slides (no video).

  • A biweekly live video program, WilentzTV.com, was launched last year by Wilentz, Goldman & Spitzer, of Woodbridge, NJ. Their “Internet TV channel” covers topics such as “Top 10 Tips When Getting Divorced,” “HIPAA Compliance Made Simple,” and “Vioxx: Do You Have a Case,” as mentioned in my December column.

  • Office and campus tours can’t be done live due to the limited scope of a camera tethered to a computer. For example, as I discussed in my December column, Washington University School of Law offers a perky 1-minute campus tour on-demand at http://law.wustl.edu/qtlifewuls - QuickTime required. So does Duke Law School, which hosts a 3-minute video on-demand at www.law.duke.edu/webcast/virtualtour.html - RealPlayer required.

  • See other examples of on-demand webcasts in our nationwide roundup of law firm webcasts at our bullet reviews and links page.
Webcasting is a great way to make a splash and expand your reach! Choose your weapon: live or taped streaming video.


Too many webcasts, not enough time. If you see streaming audio or video you think would be of interest to our readers, please URL and description.
Has your firm produced a webcast? We want the details!
If you'd like a clickable list of the web addresses from this and past columns,
Kendall Callas, , is president of American Webcast and a 20-year veteran law office technology consultant.


Webcast Gallery | Monthly Column | Competitive Research | Action Plan | Contact Us | Help


Copyright © 2011 by Kendall Callas   All rights reserved.