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Media Factory 4.0 - Instagram and More...

2013-05-09T15:01:30Z

May 15th, 2013 - Toronto It's springtime and we are proud to let the sun shine on our next release of Media Factory! There are few new features, but the best is yet to come in another announcement coming soon!

New to Media Factory - Social Feeds

Media Factory is now an essential tool for anyone looking to use Instagram for audience engagement with the addition of our Social Feeds module. Create a unique hashtag and run a contest, or simply browse Instagram for the best pictures representing any subject. All Instagram content uses the same moderation and curation workflows as content uploaded directly by your users.

If you wish to have this feature activated in your account, please contact your account manager or call the hotline at (866) 779-9215.

New Media Details Page

We've made a few changes to the Media Detail page based on user feedback. Most notably is that media metadata is now found, legible, below the media in the main column. Tags are also moved from the sidebar to under the media. This should make reviewing and moderating extra information submitted by users much easier.

Groups, Events and Assignments

One of the new core features of Media Factory 4 is assignments. Assignments are a type of group that are associated with specific tasks performed by users such as submitting photos of a particular news event or general calls-to-action such as prompts for cat photos.

You will see groups, events and assignments appear as filters and organizational tools throughout Media Factory (if you have access to these features)

As part of this project, we consolidated groups and events into the same system and redesigned the group detail page into sections to simplify the user experience.

Game Mechanics

We've added deep support for game mechanics using the Gigya Gamification Platform as a backend. Any action taken by users on the Media Factory platform can be tracked and rewarded. Emails are sent to users whenever they earn an achievement or progress to a new level. Updated profiles include badges, point totals and customizable levels.

This is not currently a self-serve product, so please contact your Filemobile account representative to get started.

For the full list of fixes and enhancements, visit the Developer Portal!

CBC gets Hyperlocal with the help of Filemobile’s Social Marketing Suite

2013-04-11T22:14:06Z

April 11th, 2013 - Toronto. Trends and innovations such as globalization, the increasing ubiquity of the Internet and widespread communication using mobile devices may have fundamentally transformed the way we share stories—not to mention which stories get the most attention—but one tenet holds true: the most important news that impacts our daily lives on the most personal levels is often generated just steps from where we live and work.

That news also changes on a daily, sometimes even hourly, basis.

With that in mind, CBC Canada Writes launched its innovative Hyperlocal interactive story map, a contest that began April 3rd, 2013. The goal: collecting true, personal stories of changing neighbourhoods from Canadians across the country in the form of text, photo essays, audio or video. Contributors are asked to share their stories of local change—which could include everything from how gentrification is transforming their neighbourhood, to how an influx of new Canadians is changing culture and cuisine in their area—on the website hyperlocal.cbc.ca.

At the end of the month, a grand prize winner will be selected by a judging panel comprised of a member from the National Film Board, CBC staff and a professional Canadian writer. The winning submission will be turned into an interactive adaptation by the National Film Board of Canada’s Digital Studio. The winner will also be awarded a 13-inch MacBook Pro laptop. Criteria for selecting the best submission includes the author’s use of language, originality of the subject, writing and presentation style, as well as their ability to tell a compelling story through their chosen medium. The deadline for submissions is May 3, 2013.

“Hyperlocal is a great example of a media company leveraging its viewers/readers/listeners in an innovative way to share important local stories that may have otherwise gone untold,” said Filemobile President Marc Milgrom. “Initiatives such as this are important methods for augmenting existing content-gathering resources to give Canadians the information they need and want in a fun and engaging format.”

The program will also include input from a team of bloggers from coast-to-coast, as well as an esteemed panel of featured writers including How to Be a Canadian author Will Ferguson and Governor General Award-winner Miriam Toews.

Hyperlocal is powered by Filemobile’s interactive social marketing suite to Connect Through Content, specifically leveraging the cutting-edge system’s Media Community application. Other Filemobile-powered features include geo-tracking to map neighbourhood stories across the country, as well as full video upload capabilities, commenting, and Facebook login functionalities. In addition, the Hyperlocal initiative uses Filemobile’s adaptive design approach allowing participants to engage and submit content to the contest from virtually any mobile device.

For more information, visit hyperlocal.cbc.ca

Ontario government leverages Filemobile to help young entrepreneurs

2013-04-10T15:19:07Z

April 10th, 2013 - Toronto. It’s so often the case that the truly innovative and creative business ideas that drive Ontario’s economic growth are developed in the upper echelons of the province’s leading educational institutions, among its largest corporations or in the offices of its leading small-to-medium-sized businesses. Sometimes, however, finding the best ideas means going back to school.

That’s exactly the idea behind the Young Entrepreneurs, Make Your Pitch initiative. The program—organized by the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Trade and Employment—invites either individual or groups of high school students from across the province to create and upload a two-minute video outlining their great business idea, one they think will help drive the future of Ontario’s economy. Finalists will be announced on May 17, 2013, and will be invited to pitch their business idea at the annual Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE) Discovery event in Toronto on May 27th and 28th, 2013. A combination of public voting, along with judging by an expert panel, will be used to select winners across categories including technology, environment, social enterprise, retail goods, services and arts, culture and tourism.

Winners will be selected using several criteria including the viability of their product, service or invention, as well as their idea’s overall creativity, persuasiveness and the quality of their marketing plan. Winners in each category will receive entry into the Ontario government’s prestigious Summer Company program—a dynamic initiative that provides students with up to $3,000 in funding, as well as hands-on coaching and mentoring, to start and operate their own business.

“As entrepreneurs ourselves, we see the incredible value that programs such as Make Your Pitch can provide to some of our province’s best and brightest students,” said Filemobile chief financial officer Ron Watson. “As we’ve seen with some of the video pitches that are already starting to pour in, Ontario’s future is in great hands.”

Make Your Pitch is powered by Filemobile’s interactive social media platform Media Factory, specifically leveraging the cutting-edge system’s Photo/Video contest microsite and Facebook application. Other Filemobile-powered features include geo-tracking to map contest participants across the province, as well as full video upload capabilities, commenting, video-rating and Facebook login functionality.

“Make Your Pitch taps Media Factory’s flexible and reliable video upload and voting services, along with the platform’s deeply-ingrained social media functionality,” Watson added. “That type of functionality is a must-have in an era when so many students communicate almost exclusively via social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter.”

For more information, visit www.makeyourpitch.ca or facebook.com/makeyourpitch

Tim Hortons taps Filemobile for its Every Cup Tells A Story campaign

2013-04-10T14:49:05Z

April 10th, 2013 - Toronto. There are few more iconic examples of Canadiana than the brown, beige and red Tim Hortons cup. Coast-to-coast, from hockey rinks to corporate boardrooms, Tim Hortons is a fixture of this country's cultural and corporate landscape.

It's the reason why Tim Hortons launched the Every Cup Tells A Story initiative. The idea behind the project is simple: fans are invited to share stories about the role Tim Hortons coffee plays in their daily lives. Members of Tims' passionate community of coffee connoisseurs are invited to swap stories and photos in a dynamic online forum, www.everycup.ca. To date, nearly 17,000 stories have been shared on the website.

The brand-building value of initiatives such as Every Cup Tells A Story isn't lost on Filemobile chief financial officer Ron Watson.

“Initiatives such as these give brand fans the opportunity to showcase their passion for a product or service, which in this case happens to be Tim Hortons coffee,” Watson said. “Major brands are increasingly turning their fans into brand ambassadors by allowing them to engage online and share stories of how even the simplest products or services impact their daily lives. This strategy is critical to building deep-seated brand loyalty among customers.”

Everycup.ca is powered by Filemobile's interactive social media platform Media Factory, specifically leveraging the cutting-edge system's Media Community application. Other Filemobile-powered features include geo-tracking to map contest participants across the country, as well as full photo upload, commenting, photo-rating and Facebook login functionalities. The site's creative components have been developed by Burlington, Ont.-based agency Thrillworks, Inc.

“We're pleased to be able to provide the kind of reliable, flexible and innovative platform that allows Canadians to share stories that enrich each other's lives,” Watson added.

Just how passionate are Tim Hortons coffee lovers? They may just be the most dedicated customers in the world, according to some of the posts that have been flooding the site.

Take the story of the Canadian dairy farmer who broke his neck on the job and found the usual routine of a daily Tim Hortons coffee run disrupted by his debilitating injury. That was until friends in the community began delivering his customary double-double to his doorstep each day. The farmer's wife snapped a photo of a beloved cup of Tims coffee on their porch and submitted it to Everycup.ca. Tim Hortons later used the story as inspiration for a national television commercial-highlighting how a simple cup of coffee can brighten someone's spirits even in a time of major hardship.

For more information on the initiative, visit www.everycup.ca

Three Very Different Brands Embrace User-generated Content

2013-04-09T15:36:23Z

Posted on Brightcove's Blog on March 25th, 2013. Written by Brenna Fitzgerald.
Boston, MA. User-generated content is a relatively new phenomenon--originating in the mid-2000s and surging in popularity ever since. Media companies and brands alike have embraced the knowledge, thought leadership and creativity that citizen journalists and consumers bring to their owned online properties. Major household names (i.e. Ford, Doritos) have taken user-generated content one step further by embarking on advertising campaigns driven solely by brand enthusiasts. It's truly fascinating how the medium has evolved in only a short time. And, the increasingly growing prominence of online video--which really took root in the last decade--combined with the proliferation of smartphones has had a direct influence on the prevalence and influence of "citizen content."

Brightcove technology partner Filemobile provides its broad array of customers with the software necessary to help them to publish and manage user-generated content for optimal visitor engagement. Several of our joint customers are using Filemobile and Brightcove Video Cloud together to enhance and deliver their user-generated video materials. The examples below are all different--and also highly effective--implementations of user-generated video content:

Life is Good: This Boston-based apparel maker emphasizes positivity and an optimistic view on life--sentiments it seeks to promote through both its products (which benefit children in need) and marketing initiatives. Through its "Good Vibes" portal, Life is Good encourages its online community to share photos and video that highlight good cheer, humor and inspiration. Because user response to Good Vibes has been so strong, Life is Good is taking advantage of both Filemobile and Video Cloud to host, manage and maintain all of the user-generated content it receives--ensuring long-term organization and thoughtful presentation of its positive messaging.

FOX News: FOX News' uReport is the network's citizen journalism news hub. Through a mobile app and a Web interface, FOX News recruits written and video stories from citizen reporters. The network then moderates and curates the material. The best of the best is then selected for repurposing on FoxNews.com, or for airing on the network. FOX News needed a sophisticated, integrated social platform--including video management capabilities--to ensure its viewer reports were appropriately organized and prominently displayed, leading to its reliance on Video Cloud and Filemobile.

Disney/ABC Unstoppable Moms: LIVE with Kelly and Michael, presented by Disney/ABC, initiated a search for "unstoppable moms" from across North America. The show encouraged viewers to submit written or video descriptions explaining why their mom is "dedicated, caring, confident, loving, determined and ready for anything,"and then selected a series of semi-finalists. On March 14th, finalists were announced and viewers were asked to visit the microsite to vote for what they considered to be the most compelling video or essay. The worst part? How can anyone possibly choose one story amongst all of the wonderful, inspiring ones? The best part? One incredibly deserving mom won the grand prize of $100,000! With a prize of that magnitude at stake, LIVE needed to ensure that the content it showcased was appropriately hosted and easily maintained and organized. We're so excited to be a part of recognizing moms, who everyday embark upon the hardest job around.

These are all creative examples of embracing user-generated content--and it's only the beginning. User-generated content will continue to be the norm, and major brands and media companies will increasingly require sophisticated social media and online video platforms to ensure heightened engagement and content optimization.

Filemobile helps North Americans salute their Unstoppable Moms

2013-02-10T21:37:40Z

Unstoppable Mom's on Live with Kelly and Michael

February 10th, 2012 - Toronto. They take their kids to soccer practice, tend to them when they’re sick and manage any of dozens of other daily work or home duties—sometimes moms seem absolutely unstoppable.

Now their grown-up—and still growing-up—kids have the chance to take their hats off to those super moms with the kick-off of Live with Kelly and Michael’s Search for Unstoppable Moms contest. The UGC initiative invites participants to write a one-page explanation or upload a video to the show’s website describing why their mom is “dedicated, caring, confident, loving, determined and ready for anything”—and most importantly, why she deserves to win the grand prize.

And a very grand prize it is. A panel of Live judges will select 15 semi-finalists based on the compelling nature of their submissions during the week of March 4th, 2013, before four finalists are selected. Those lucky finalists will then be invited to appear on Live, at which point viewers will have the chance to vote on their submissions. The Finalist who receives the most online votes will be awarded the grand prize—a cheque for $100,000.

Prior to selecting a winner, various videos will be featured on the contest website—powered by Filemobile’s cutting-edge Media Factory social media management platform and leveraging the firm’s UGC Contest Application—as webisodes, allowing viewers to get a sneak peak of some of the top submissions.

“The Search for Unstoppable Moms contest is a perfect way to salute the tireless efforts of moms across North America,” said Filemobile Co-Founder Ron Watson. “We’re proud to have Media Factory powering such a fun and highly-interactive contest.”

Submissions are due by February 8th, 2013, so don’t delay—now’s the time to explain why your mom is unstoppable. For more information, visit http://unstoppablemoms.livekellyandmichael.com.

Filemobile helps Canadians band together for new WagJag contest

2013-02-08T17:34:05Z

February 8th, 2013 - Toronto. So, what would you do with 1,000 wristbands? That’s the question Toronto-based daily deal website WagJag is asking Canadians in its quirky new WagJag Wristband Challenge Contest.

The premise is simple: WagJag is inviting participants to submit a video or photo and a short 50-word caption explaining what they would do with 1,000 wristbands. That means using 1,000 hair elastics rubber bands or anything else remotely resembling a wristband, in a creative way.

A total of seven finalists will be selected from the entries and three winners will be chosen by a panel of WagJag judges. An additional three People’s Choice finalists will be chosen by the public, while a sponsor finalist will be chosen in a random draw from participants who cast votes during the voting period, which closes at 11:59pm on February 10, 2013.

What determines a winner? Top prize in the Judges’ Selection category goes to the most scalable, creative and original entry, while the People’s Choice winner will be determined by overall vote count.

The Judges’ Selection first-place winner will enjoy a seven-night all-inclusive package for two adults and two children to the Grand Palladium Bavaro Resort and Spa in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Second and third-place runners-up will also be rewarded for their submissions with promotional codes for Jaunt.ca and WagJag.com. The winner of the People’s Choice grand prize will walk away with a $500 Jaunt.ca promotional code, as well as $250 promotional code for WagJag.com, while the Random Voter winner can also look forward to Jaunt and WagJag spending sprees. Prize winners will be announced throughout March and April, 2013.

The WagJag Wristband Challenge Contest is powered by the UGC Contest Application of Filemobile’s Media Factory social media platform, and boasts key features including advanced video galleries, geo-tracking functionality and Facebook log-in.

“WagJag is a fast-growing brand with some cutting-edge marketing ideas, and we’re excited about being part of this fun and innovative contest,” said Filemobile chief financial officer Ron Watson. “It’s not every day that people are asked to come up with new ways to use 1,000 wristbands.”

For more information, visit http://wristbandchallenge.wagjag.com

Filemobile helps Canadians band together for new WagJag contest

2013-02-08T17:33:08Z

So, what would you do with 1,000 wristbands? That’s the question Toronto-based daily deal website WagJag is asking Canadians in its quirky new WagJag Wristband Challenge Contest. The premise is simple: WagJag is inviting participants to submit a video or photo and a short 50-word caption explaining what they would do with 1,000 wristbands. That means using 1,000 hair elastics rubber bands or anything else remotely resembling a wristband, in a creative way. A total of seven finalists will be selected from the entries and three winners will be chosen by a panel of WagJag judges. An additional three People’s Choice finalists will be chosen by the public, while a sponsor finalist will be chosen in a random draw from participants who cast votes during the voting period, which closes at 11:59pm on February 10, 2013. What determines a winner? Top prize in the Judges’ Selection category goes to the most scalable, creative and original entry, while the People’s Choice winner will be determined by overall vote count. “Our brand is built around thinking and acting creatively, which led us to come up with the idea for this very unconventional contest,” said WagJag IMPORTANT PERSON XXXX XXXXX. “We’re excited to see just how creative and innovative the Wristband Challenge entries will be as people vie for our top prize.” The Judges’ Selection first-place winner will enjoy a seven-night all-inclusive package for two adults and two children to the Grand Palladium Bavaro Resort and Spa in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Second and third-place runners-up will also be rewarded for their submissions with promotional codes for Jaunt.ca and WagJag.com. The winner of the People’s Choice grand prize will walk away with a $500 Jaunt.ca promotional code, as well as $250 promotional code for WagJag.com, while the Random Voter winner can also look forward to Jaunt and WagJag spending sprees. Prize winners will be announced throughout March and April, 2013. The WagJag Wristband Challenge Contest is powered by the UGC Contest Application of Filemobile’s Media Factory social media platform, and boasts key features including advanced video galleries, geo-tracking functionality and Facebook log-in. “WagJag is a fast-growing brand with some cutting-edge marketing ideas, and we’re excited about being part of this fun and innovative contest,” said Filemobile chief financial officer Ron Watson. “It’s not every day that people are asked to come up with new ways to use 1,000 wristbands.” For more information, visit http://wristbandchallenge.wagjag.com/

Filemobile tapped to help Torontonians showcase how they live green

2013-02-08T17:12:03Z

February 8th, 2013 - Toronto . Torontonians have long been proud of their devotion to the environment and all things green. Now they have the chance to prove it and win a hefty prize in the process.

The City of Toronto’s new Live Green Toronto Awards are designed to showcase the very greenest of the city’s private and corporate citizens. Contestants entering the competition in one of five categories—youth, individuals, groups, small businesses and corporations—are asked to simply complete the entry form and answer the question “What makes you one of Toronto’s greenest” in 500 words or less, then shoot and upload a 90-second video to http://awards.livegreentoronto.ca explaining why their embrace of the green lifestyle and related initiatives is so unique. After that the real work begins as contestants are asked to build buzz about their entry via social media channels such as Facebook and Twitter.

Judges will select three finalists in each award category and assess entries based on their explanation of the individual, group or organization’s environmental impact, innovation and creativity—then factor in the results of the first round of popular voting to select a winner in their respective categories.

Winners—who will receive $2,500 in cash, the Live Green Toronto Award and a chance to tell their story on CP24—will be formally announced on the news network on April 22, 2013.

Live Green Toronto, a sustainability initiative launched by the City of Toronto, promotes and supports the greening of Toronto through programs, grants and useful information to help business and residents make an impact on their local environment—from helping to reduce emissions, to protecting Canada’s climate as a whole.

The City of Toronto turned to Filemobile’s social media platform to host and support the initiative, specifically leveraging the software suite’s UGC Contest Application to accept, curate and publish contestants’ rich media content in a timely and flexible manner.

“From green roofs to green spaces, Toronto has deep roots in promoting green living,” said Steve Hulford from Filemobile. “We’re pleased that Media Factory could provide the Live Green Awards with the necessary UGC and social media management tools needed to make this initiative a success.”

For more information on the Live Green Toronto Awards, visit http://awards.livegreentoronto.ca

Filemobile tapped to help Torontonians showcase how they live green

2013-02-08T16:57:04Z

February 8th, 2013 - Toronto Torontonians have long been proud of their devotion to the environment and all things green. Now they have the chance to prove it and win a hefty prize in the process.

Winners—who will receive $2,500 in cash, the Live Green Toronto Award and a chance to tell their story on CP24—will be formally announced on the news network on April 22, 2013.

For more information on the Live Green Toronto Awards, visit http://awards.livegreentoronto.ca

Thomas Cook Launches Blogging Contest for Kids

2012-12-11T15:30:05Z

December 11th - Toronto - Filemobile is pleased to announce the launch of "Thomas Cook's Kids First Blogger Contest". Thomas Cook is looking for insight from a kids point of view. A Kids First Travel blogger (as entrants are called) is someone who will submit a photo or video explaining what their favorite vacation spot is. They want to hear all the fun details of what they liked best about their vacation. Bloggers might mention their favorite beach, pool, people, food or resort. Some early entries show kids playing on the beach, drinking out of a coconut, watching the sunset, swimming in the resort pool, hanging out with Disney characters, and driving dune-buggies.

To motivate kids to participate in the contest, Thomas Cook is offering a Grand Prize of a trip for 1 family to Beaches in Ocho Rios, Jamaica ( worth approximately $10,000 CDN). The contest runs from November 15th, 2012 to January 15th, 2013. So remember to ask your kid his/her opinion on their favorite travel destination.

The "Thomas Cook's Kids First Blogger Contest" is powered by Filemobile's Photo/Video Contest Product. The contest was implemented by the Thomas Cook team who produced the graphics for the application using our quick skinning guide. For more information on how your organization can use the Photo/Video contest check this video out.

Filemobile & Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation launch UGC Contest

2012-12-10T22:22:29Z

The Gallery Widget on the Christopher Reeve
Foundation website

November 26, 2012 - North Hills, NJ. Filemobile is honoured to be working with The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation to provide a contest widget to help give away a $3,500 wheelchair. The Reeve's inspired a generation and we are excited to see the stories come in from the candidates.

Here is the press release posted on November 26th, 2012: the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation and Tilt-A-Rack launched a national contest in which individuals living with paralysis can win a free power wheelchair. The contest is open for submissions now through Jan. 18, 2012.

Entries will be accepted from a person living with paralysis or from a friend or family member of the person who would benefit from the wheelchair. The entry must include either a 200-word essay with a photo of the person who will be using the wheelchair, or a video less than two minutes in length. The submission must explain how winning the power wheelchair will improve the health and well-being of the winner and improve his or her ability to give back to family, caregivers, the community or the world.

The contest is hosted on the Reeve Foundation's website at ChristopherReeve.org/chaircontest. The winner will be selected by the most number of votes – voting is open to the public. The prize will be one Jazzy Select 6 joy stick controlled power wheelchair, valued at more than $3,500. The wheelchair will be awarded directly to the winner.

"For many people living with paralysis, having a quality power wheelchair could make a real difference in their ability to live more comfortably and independently," said Peter Wilderotter, President & Chief Executive Officer of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. "The Foundation is pleased to support Tilt-A-Rack, a company that has been so generous to the paralysis community, in hosting this contest. I encourage all individuals with spinal cord injury who would benefit from this wheelchair to enter the contest and spread the word so that more people will see their stories and cast a vote."

According to a Reeve Foundation study, One Degree of Separation, more than one million people in the U.S. are living with some form of paralysis due to spinal cord injury. The cost of living for a person with paralysis can be considerable and vary greatly due to the severity of the injury. Average yearly expenses can range from $334,170 to $1,023,924 in the first year alone, and estimated lifetime costs can rise over $4.5 million for a 25-year old, according to The University of Alabama National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation is using Filemobile's Gallery and Upload widget to run the contest. "It is a great honor to be working with the Reeve Foundation," said Steve Hulford, founder of Filemobile. "We are looking forward to capturing and curating the inspiring stories of those that are participating in the contest. "

For more information about spinal cord injury, visit ChristopherReeve.org.

Canadian Geographic uses Media Factory to build a robust new Photo Club

2012-11-13T23:36:00Z

The Homepage of Canadian Geographic's Photo Club

November 12th, 2012 - Toronto. Few publications capture the grace, beauty and uniqueness of Canada, its people, culture and landscapes quite like Canadian Geographic.

The iconic magazine and its online portal have been publishing the very best photos and features on all things Canadian for decades. So, when Canadian Geographic decided to revamp its popular Photo Club, it made sense to tap a flexible platform with cutting-edge features to manage user-generated photo initiatives in one online hub.

Enter the new Canadian Geographic Photo Club powered by Filemobile’s interactive social marketing platform: Media Factory. It’s an online community for photo enthusiasts and Canada’s one-stop-shop for the best weather, wildlife, outdoor and people-focused photographs this country has to offer.

The website also offers easy access to the organization’s ongoing online photo contests, including the current Whatever the Weather Photo Contest and the intriguing Spirit of Canadian Football competition, not to mention the Photo of the Week Contest, Field Reports from Canadian Geographic’s top photographers and photography-related how-to articles and tips. That’s in addition to a repository of more than 150,000 incredible photos.

“It was important for Canadian Geographic to have a new, state-of-the-art community site for members to share photos, tips and other information quickly and easily,” says Gilles Gagnier, Vice President, Digital Media and Custom Publishing at Canadian Geographic. “I think the significantly enhanced Photo Club will only continue to grow that community and help bring Canada’s natural wonders to the attention of photo enthusiasts and globetrotters the world over.”

Community members are invited to take on important responsibilities when it comes time to snap sensational shots from across the country. How? The Photo Club’s Shoot This! feature allows Canadian Geographic editors to post specific photo assignments. To date, community members have been asked to photograph everything from Canada’s most impressive architecture to its most notable graffiti.

“Assigning specific tasks to community members is a huge trend in online communities at the moment, and it’s only poised to gain strength in the future to build relevance and engagement,” said Filemobile president Marc Milgrom. “That’s why it’s crucial that any community-focused portal has this cutting-edge functionality, as well as the ability to scale as its membership base grows.”

Of course, it’s not just the editors of Canadian Geographic getting in on the assigning act. Community members can also suggest ideas for Shoot This! based on their photography work or interest in a unique category of photos.

For more information on the Canadian Geographic Photo Club, visit photoclub.canadiangeographic.ca.

Major brands and media leveraging Media Factory for Twitter, Instagram curation

2012-10-24T17:21:10Z

Some examples of Media Factory curated Instagram and Twitter feeds.

October 24th, 2012 - Toronto. Major brands and media outlets face a unique challenge in the digital age: finding a way to curate the abundance of user-generated content they receive, then publishing it to various social media channels through a single, comprehensive platform.

It’s a somewhat pleasant predicament. As target consumers or viewers become ever more engaged with a brand or initiative, they’re more willing than ever to create and post exciting content that displays their brand loyalty or passion for a particular subject. Take the feel-good Life Is Good lifestyle brand out of the U.S., for example. Its fans have been posting reams of content to the company’s Good Vibes website all year—much of it in real time from locations around the world.

But as with any online content, it requires a flexible tool to moderate and manage, particularly as more organizations turn to popular social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram to engage with their target audiences.

It’s the reason why Filemobile has made it a top priority to consistently add and improve the curation tools unique to our interactive social media platform Media Factory. The platform allows organizations to capture, curate and publish social media content quickly and effectively. That means that user-generated photos or videos can be accepted and posted to sites such as Instagram and YouTube in a matter of minutes. The benefits: improved audience engagement, reduced content acquisition costs and bottom line-boosting audience growth.

"Filemobile’s Media Factory platform provides the kind of speed, reliability and flexibility that organizations need to discover and curate user-generated content from channels such as Instagram or Twitter in near-real time" says Steve Hulford Filemobile's Chief Creative Officer.

A wide range of organizations are using Media Factory to curate and publish social media content including CBC. Canada’s national broadcaster tapped the platform for its Sports Day in Canada once again this year, using it to accept and publish sports-focused content to Facebook and Instagram.

As Hulford points out, there’s one key reason why more companies are tapping Media Factory for the cutting-edge digital solutions they need to succeed in the social media realm.

“Our company is built on innovation,” he says. “We’re constantly looking for new ways to improve our products and services, and organizations have come to rely on our digital expertise, strong customer service and constant improvements to turn everyday social media interactions with their target audiences into meaningful brand-building experiences.”

Check out Life is Good's Good Vibes program where curated #optimism content gets ingested into Media Factory from Instagram.

Active Network launches Mob Party

2012-10-09T23:00:36Z

October 9th, 2012 - Toronto. The San Diego based Active.com has launched a site called Mob Party where their active audience can come to celebrate mud runs, obstacle courses and other good fun.

The site explains: "Expect The Unexpected: Mud Runs, Obstacle Courses, Beer And More...", "You've climbed, leaped, and gotten downright dirty—now it's time to celebrate. Show off your photos, stories and war wounds... after all, you've earned your bragging rights."

A mud run is unlike your average 5 or 10K run, it is a great adventure generally involving an obstacle course and ... mud!!! They take a great amount of hard work, stamina and determination to finish. They are usually 5-10K in length and involve a lot of sprinting, jumping, climbing, and rolling. The Mod Party microsite is designed as a resource to find mud runs, and to showcase the good fun that people have taking part in them.

The site has been adapted using the templates from the Media Factory Photo/Video contest by the talented team at Active.com. Check it out at http://whatsyour.active.com/.

About Active.com - Active.com is the leading online community for people who want to discover, learn about, share, register for and ultimately participate in activities about which they are passionate. Millions of active individuals visit Active.com each month to search and register online for races, team sports and recreational activities; interact with others who have similar interests; start online training programs; and access nutrition, fitness and training tips.

Filemobile Launches New Gallery Widget

2012-10-09T16:09:56Z

October 9th, 2012 - Toronto. Introducing the responsive gallery widget. A brand new product that can quickly be installed, customized and deployed on your website in minutes.

Monetization

Increase page views on your site by featuring your professional or user-generated content in this simple and attractive gallery. The unique design of the gallery widget means that each image or video view equals a website page view. The gallery supports images and video, so video pre-roll ads are also possible. The gallery lives on your website, on your URL. Your users can share individual images and videos to Facebook and other and social networks that drive traffic back to your site.

Social Content

The Filemobile Gallery Widget works seamlessly with the powerful UGC Upload Widget. Run a contest by adding a vote button and prompting your users to upload their own content. Because our widgets are tightly integrated with Facebook, when uploading and voting, Facebook users are automatically prompted to share the action with their friends.

Launch Today

Widgets are managed in Media Factory, the industry-leading UGC publishing platform. With the Media Factory Widget Publisher, you can design and launch uploaders and galleries in minutes. Specify the number of columns and rows of thumbnails, choose colours and turn voting on or off.

The gallery widget also supports a slideshow viewing mode. This configuration removes the thumbnail gallery below the viewport. The gallery is designed to be responsive and will automatically adjust to the area provided on your website. It was built from the ground up to look and work great on touch devices.

Check out our widget demos at http://widgets.filemobile.com.

Media Factory 3.1.10 Release

2012-10-09T10:06:03Z

October 9th, 2012 - Toronto. Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends! It's the fall, and this release of Media Factory is about getting the house in order and getting ready for the winter! The first thing you'll notice is larger thumbnails to help you discover all the fall colours being submitted by your community members. We've also made a few highly anticipated fixes and a number of performance improvements under the hood.

We resolved an issue where repositioning groups would cause the underlying group tree to become corrupt. Between the time this issue was discovered and now resolved, all users were denied the permission to reposition groups. This permission is now restored for everyone who had it previously. Read more about groups.

The Media Factory translator module has received a major overhaul that fixes an issue causing translations to disappear under certain high load situations. The interface is now completely disabled while the system is working. This prevents the user from accidentally overwriting translations and corrupting the translation table. This will also solve a problem where restoring applications would throw a translation-related error message.

For our developers, we've vastly improved how template variable errors are handled. Now, if a variable is missing, the page will continue to load and the error will be clearly presented in context of the site. Also, you can turn off these errors in application settings once your site goes live.

What else?

Added search, filtering and sorting to group list page
Added denied reason drop-down to moderation buttons in media list view
Enabled image resizer to use original file before conversion is complete
Added the ability to batch send files to FTP

Check out the full release notes at the Media Factory developer portal for a list of all changes in this release.

Filemobile’s Media Factory platform once again powers CBC Sports Day website

2012-09-06T23:36:39Z

September 6th 2012, Toronto. From Stanley Cup finals to Olympic podium finishes, few things unite Canadians quite like sports.

Canada’s national broadcaster CBC should know. The network has been bringing major sporting events into the nation’s living rooms for decades. Now the CBC is hoping Canadians will leave their homes and take their sporting passion to parks, gyms and community centres across the country as it readies for the third annual Sports Day in Canada on September 29, 2012.

This year’s edition of the wildly popular event is focused not only mobilizing, but also supporting, local organizers’ efforts to host Sports Day in Canada activities. Organizations, communities and schools are being encouraged to register their events at the Sports Day in Canada website to build buzz and encourage as many of their friends, family and colleagues to participate as possible.

The purpose of the one-day event—and community engagement week that precedes it—is to encourage fitness, activity and healthy lifestyles among Canadians from coast to coast.

The event website, http://sportsday.cbc.ca, is powered by Filemobile’s Media Factory event community application. It offers a one-stop shop for Sports Day viewers and participants including videos and photos of sporting events from 2012 and years past, not to mention social media interactivity to boost Sports Day awareness such as handy Facebook log-in capabilities and geo-tracking to stay up to date on activities in communities across Canada.

For organizers, the Sports Day website provides a host of promotional tools ranging from public relations tips and tactics, to customizable e-blasts and an event listing to maximize participation in their event.

“Sport and physical fitness are an integral part of Canadians’ lives and we’re proud to once again be working with CBC and providing our Media Factory platform to help power Sports Day in Canada,” said Filemobile chief creative officer Steve Hulford.

For more information and to register a Sports Day in Canada event, visit http://sportsday.cbc.ca

World Bank taps Filemobile for its Voices4Climate competition

2012-09-06T23:07:30Z

September 6th 2012, Toronto. To raise awareness of the environmental impact of climate change, the World Bank last year launched its first Connect4Climate competition, a contest that encouraged African youth to tell their own climate change stories through photos and videos. The initiative resulted in more than 700 submissions, with at least one from every African country.

But this year the World Bank decided to take the initiative one step further and go global with its Voices4Climate Photo/Video/Music Video Competition, a precursor to the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Qatar this December. Participants aged 18 to 35 are asked to submit photos and videos to highlight how the ever-shifting climate is changing life for them, their family and friends, as well as their community and country. The best part—participants are being invited to come up with their own climate change solutions or innovative tactics for dealing with weather-related changes in their regions.

Submissions must tell a climate change story in one of the following categories: energy, forests, cities, agriculture, gender, jobs, health, the green economy and water. This year a new podcast competition category has also been added in partnership with the land degradation-focused organization TerrAfrica. Entries in that category should focus on a land degradation or sustainable land and water-management story from Sub-Saharan Africa.

The issue of climate change isn’t going away, so it’s important that we keep raising awareness about climate change-related challenges, as well as how people are adapting and managing to overcome its effects.

Voices4Climate leverages Filemobile’s Media Factory platform and UGC contest application via Facebook to host and manage the climate change-related video and photo content, while providing innovative geo-tracking functionality to track the origin of submissions from around the world.

“We’re proud to be working with the World Bank on this important initiative,” said Filemobile co-founder Ron Watson. “The World Bank has long been a leader in highlighting climate-change facts, challenges and adaptive solutions, and we think Media Factory will provide the right technology to help spread the word.”

Winning entries will be featured at the UN Conference on Climate Change in Qatar, while TerrAfrica podcast story winners will be invited to cover the conference for TerrAfrica Green Radio. Winners in the music video category will have their submission featured on MTV’s Voices platform after spending a day with MTV editors in New York or London. Entries must be received no later than 11:59pm EST, October 15, 2012.

For full contest details and to learn more about the Voices4Climate Competition, visit http://connect4climate.org

CBC's The Nature of Things Launches Squirrel Photo Contest

2012-08-15T00:20:50Z

August 14th 2012, Toronto. In celebration of urban animals alike the CBC's Nature of Things is airing a documentary titled SQUIRRELS: An Urban Love Story?. To promote the upcoming show which airs October 25th, they have launched a Squirrel Photo Contest (Filemobile things this might be the first of its kind :-) ) the CBC is asking their audience to send in their best squirrel-related pictures.

The Nature of Things is asking that submissions include a brief description of your photo - whether it's the story behind the pic or your thoughts about squirrels in general. On November 2nd, the CBC will choose 2 winners - one for the Squirreliest pic, and another for the Most Nutty.

The CBC Nature of Things Squirrel Photo Contest makes use of the Media Factory's Upload and Slideshow Widget. The upload widget allows a content producer to drop in an iframe that contains the registration and upload work flow so users can easily upload photos from their computer. The Slideshow widget can display hundreds of images and is easy to embed into a page. Both allow producers to easily launch a user generated content program very quickly with no programming involved.

Check out the Squirrel Photo contest at CBC's the Nature of things