Frequently Given Answers (FGA)
Programming
What types of programming are considered?
All types actually. If you've got an idea you can tell us about it in the forums or via email.
Can I make my own and submit it?
Yes by all means. Just give us a call first and get some pointers as to how best to ensure a good result.
What technical specifications do I need to meet?
At the moment, all our video is delivered in Windows Media Video format at about 500kbps, anything up to 720x576 PAL resolution.
If you want to go bigger, get in touch first.
Can I sponsor one of your programs?
You can have your advert play before or after the program, and even have a banner along the bottom throughout the entire program.
For example, you may want to sponsor a weekly "What's On" guide for film in the local area, or a weekly news report, or an animated series!
By wrapping only your advertising around this show, you can basically brand it as your own, and benefit from the kudos that brings.
What this means is that your advertising will be covering most if not all of the production costs for that program.
Please look at our advertisers section for more information.
I've got an event coming up. Could you film it for us? Could it be included on SurfCity?
We can put one of our production teams on to any event you need covered.
Give us a call to discuss how many cameras you may need and we'll be happy to talk to you.
I've got an event coming up. Could you stream it live to all your viewers?
By all means. We can set up and advertise any live streaming event for any number of required viewers.
Whether it's a limited seat amateur dramatics event broadcast to 50 people who can't make it to the event, or a sold-out festival to 10,000.
We can even set up pay-per-view processing and digital rights management to protect your content.
However, a lot obviously depends on your requirements and the facilities at the location, especially if there is no internet connectivity, etc.
So please give us plenty of notice before the event to ensure we have time to set it all up.
I've seen a program on SurfCity which I believe shouldn't be there (or I own the copyright). How can I get it removed?
This shouldn't happen, but if you feel you have a case then by all means give us a call and we'll investigate it straight away.
Do you have any 'LIVE' shows or events?
As things progress, we will undoubtedly incorporate some live programming into SurfCity.
We aim to have live audiences from each local area partaking in chat shows, game shows, you name it.
Keep watching, we'll announce more news as soon as it becomes available.
How do I get a complete run-down of everything on SurfCity?
Because we will be uploading programming non-stop, a definitive list would be huge,
but we're working on a system that will enable you to view all the programs available in a manageable list.
Why does the video stutter sometimes when I watch SurfCity?
This happens for a number of reasons.
Between our servers and your computer are on average 10-15, sometimes up to 30 computers dotted along the path,
all playing pass-the-parcel with chunks of our video data. The video data starts at our data center in Kentucky USA,
then it does a few hops to get to New York, before crossing the Atlantic, arriving in London before
hopping out to your ISP's servers, making its way through their network until finally it arrives at your computer.
So, there are lots of stages the data has to go through to get from us to you.
If any one of these computers along the way is experiencing difficulties then the data may be held up temporarily,
meaning the video data can arrive late, or even get totally lost. Your computer has to wait for the right chunk before it can play the next bit of video.
In cases of extreme delays, it may even mean that the video you are playing stops altogether.
I already run/operate a video stream. Can I get it listed on the SurfCity site?
As long as you can handle having 20,000 people watching it every month then by all means. :-) We are especially interested in anything that shows a local bias.
Where can I suggest ideas for the site and submit ideas for possible productions?
Just head over to the forums and tell us what you want to see, do or make.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Are there any restrictions on the type of programming on SurfCity?
See our Terms of Use page. Basically, no nudity or offensive material, and it's totally at our discretion as to whether your video gets used or not.
If you see a video and think it is offensive, let us know, we keep count of all complaints, and if enough people complain, we'll take steps to remove the offending video.
I want to get involved, who do I contact?
Call Viv on 029 2025 0737, or email viv dot mainwaring at surflocaltv dot com.
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Advertising
Why should I advertise on SurfCity rather than other local sources?
Cos we rule, and you can get your video, product or service in front of tens of thousands of hungry local eyes every month.
Is SurfCity affiliated with any advertising agencies?
Not yet, but if you want to talk... you know where we are.
How much will my Ad cost?
Let's start by saying a 30 sec Broadcast TV ad will cost you about £5-15k for production alone, and another £30-60k for airtime.
We are a LOT less expensive, somewhere in the region of press or radio advertising prices.
So you can spend anything from £300 to a few thousand depending on what you need.
The beauty is that all of your advertising spend is being seen by the people most likely to buy from you... your locals.
We also offer banner advertising, a lot cheaper again obviously, which may be an option for some smaller advertisers.
Whatever option you choose, we are extremely competitive in our pricing, and all work is done to broadcast TV quality,
so you can even use the same advert on traditional TV, if you can afford their airtime fees!
Are there any additional expenses once the Ad has been made?
Included in your advertising package will be a set number of viewings, in multiples of 1000.
This number gets reduced by one each time someone views your advert.
Once it reaches zero, or before if you wish, you will need to top-up your account with us if indeed you want to re-run your advert.
How do I know how many people have seen my ad?
Whereas traditional TV style advertising provides a guesstimate of how many viewers you will reach,
with webstats we can show exactly how many times your advert has been viewed.
No more guessing, you'll have a completely accurate viewership, which you can relate directly to your increased sales.
Ok, I'm convinced, so how do I go about placing an Ad with SurfCity?
Just call Viv on 029 2025 0737, and he can discuss your needs and prepare a detailed quote,
or if you prefer, email viv dot mainwaring at surflocaltv dot com.
I've already got a TV commercial, can I use that?
Yes. If you can provide us with a copy of your commercial on Broadcast tape (DigiBeta or Beta SP) then we can do the rest.
Alternatively, we can also use DVD if necessary.
Can I create my own commercial / infommercial and put it on SurfCity?
If you know what you're doing then of course. You'll just pay for the number of views your commercial gets.
I'm rich and I want a higher profile. Can I sponsor one of your programs?
PLEASE ring us now.
I can't see my ad on the website any more. What gives?
The package of 'views' that you bought with your commercial may have run out so if you want to re-run your commercial
you should contact us to purchase more 'views'.
Can I run an infommercial or promotional film on SurfCity?
Commercial, infommercial, short promo, full length promo, they're all the same to us. Give us a call to discuss it more.
How do I choose where to place my commercial?
Your commercial can be placed in a number of ways. The options at present are:
- Directly before of a chosen video.
- In the video archive, ready to be browsed and watched just like any other video. (good for virals)
- Dynamically assigned to any video based on specified keywords.
- We are doing our best to introduce new ways into the mix so stay tuned.
How long are the commercials? Can they be any length?
Commercials are best served short, so 10, 20, 30 and 40 seconds is usual, sometimes up to 1 minute.
Any longer and we'd probably class them as promos or infommercials which may affect placement or keywords used to describe the video that's all.
It doesn't matter too much though.
Can I place a banner advert as well as a video?
Yes, we are introducing a number of standard sized areas scattered around the site, to support jpeg, gif, gif anim, and flash banner adverts.
More details to follow.
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