In anticipation of its Wednesday, May 31 debut, Yahoo! Canada has launched an official microsite for CHUM’s Canada’s Next Top Model. The site will host video clips, behind-the-scenes catfights and model blogs. The new microsite, found at http://topmodel.yahoo.ca is the first time that the broadcaster and the portal have collaborated. ‘Partnerships are key to our business,’ explains Ray Newal, head of content and business development for Yahoo! He explains that a partnership like this one benefits many groups. ‘For show viewers, it’s exclusive content [on the site]. For the broadcasters, Yahoo! Canada provides an audience of 15 million users. For advertisers and sponsors, [they] get to engage a wider audience in a deeper way.’ As such, Canada’s Next Top Model‘s brand sponsor logos, Cover Girl, Nice ‘n Easy, Pantene and Olay, are visible on the site. Newal says that branded online content initiatives like this one drive content (and ultimately, brand) involvement. ‘So instead of watching one hour per week, the time is increased significantly.’
When asked why not host the site on their own online property, CHUM’s director of interactive explains, ‘We’re always looking for new solutions. In this case, Yahoo! has a greater reach and more tools than citytv.com does, so it helps us reach a much larger online audience.’ The deal was done direct.
