VideoTile Blog

Glee star, Jane Lynch, is the face for LG Electronics’ five promotional videos launched as a way of raising awareness of teenagers’ texting while driving.

The promotional videos will see Jane Lynch raise awareness about the dangers of texting and driving. The video can be watched on the LG Text Ed website.

“Since becoming involved with LG on this campaign, I have realised the quick pace of parenthood,” said Lynch in a prepared statement. “So, LG brought me on board to shed some light on the issue of mobile misuse among teens. Together, we have created a series of videos that are entertaining yet speak seriously to parents about this growing issue.”

In the series of promotional videos, Lynch plays the role of a newly reformed ‘text offender’ who has a self professed texting fiend regularly engaged in mobile harassment, text rage, and other responsible behaviours. Tackling the issues of sexting, texting while driving and mobile bullying, each of the promotional videos has been developed as a way to encourage parents and teenagers to seek professional advice and guidance from the LGTextEd.com website to help promote safe and responsible usage of mobile phones.

The steps LG have taken are a great way to warn kids about the dangers when driving. There are many countries trying to implement laws which will clamp down on texting while driving, with the UK instilling a £60 fine and three points on a person’s license if they are caught.

“Jane Lynch’s comedic skill and new-mom status were a perfect fit for the LG Text Ed program,” said Tim O’Brien, vice president of consumer and trade marketing. “We felt that Jane could deliver our message to parents with clarity, wit and authority – communicating the importance of the issue without lecturing or being condescending.”

Gmail users have been left in an angry frame of mind after Google implemented a promotional video which played ragtime music giving users no idea of how to turn it off.

In a bid to promote their brand new Gmail Priority Inbox, the promotional video has annoyed Gmail users with many thinking it was a virus or system problem.

“I thought my account had been hacked – especially when I heard the scrunching of paper,” posted a very angry Gmail user via the Google help forums.

The promotional video only affects people who use Google Chrome, the target audience for the Google Priority Inbox.

The new promotional video is simply an advertisement for the new email system; however its video and audio controls are not visible unless users click through to the box.

Google announced on its Known Issues Page, “We are aware of an issue for Chrome Users where the Priority Inbox video starts upon login causing the music to play in the background. The video can be stopped by clicking the ‘New! Priority Inbox’ link and pausing the video in the promo bubble.”

Many users had questioned the new service and whether Google had actually tested the email service before its launch.

“The success has finally gone to Google’s head – it’s lost the plot,” posted Davedub on the help forum. “I am a software developer myself. There is absolutely no excuse for this. It can only be due to either a complete breakdown of the test process, which scares the hell out of me, or a badly thought out publicity stunt that is about to backfire.”

To stop the music Chrome users are being advised to click on the Priority Inbox link on the upper right, then stop the video play in the pop-up window.

Vintage TV – a brand new digital television channel – has got together with Getty Images in a bid to showcase music videos for songs that were recorded before the video age kicked off.

Using Getty Images 360,000 still images and its 8,000 hours of video content, the team will recreate 500 music videos for old school songs as well as new content which will all be featured on the new channel.

Launching today (Wed 1^st Sept) Vintage TV is marketing itself as the channel dedicated to the ‘vintage age’ focusing on the 1940s-1980s. Videos have been created for artists such as Nat King Cole, Elvis Presley, the Rolling Stones and Pink Floyd.

Kim Wilde, Paul Gambaccini and Tony Blackburn will all be presenters on the show, kick-starting the channel on Sky and Freesat’s digital satellite TV services.

David Pick, Vintage TV founder and chief executive, said, “This is a hugely exciting development for Vintage TV. The quality of content to be found in Getty Images archival collections is world renowned.

“As such, Getty Images are the perfect partner as we gather momentum towards our launch. From a creative perspective, this arrangement will further enrich the consumer experience which we continue to build across five decades of popular music, culture, fashion and trends from the 1940s to the 1980s.”

All their music videos have been put together from songs in the charts before 1976; well before the craze of the promotional video. So far the collection includes, ‘Not Fade Away’ by the Rolling Stones and ‘If I Can Dream’ by Elvis Presley.

“Each video offers a definitive blend of music and social history, and stands alone as a cultural piece in a never-before-seen form,” said the broadcaster, who have characterised their presenters as “OGs” – the Old Gits – and “Vintage Voxxies”.

Other archive partners include the BBC, ITN, Eagle Rock Entertainment and DCD Rights.