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Tuesday, February 3, 2009

LIVE BLOG: Do you have a question for the chat with the creators?

Greg Goodfried suggested we come up with a list of questions. Leave your question below!

See Update - LG15: The Show Is Yours & greg said... and From LG15: The Misfits for background.

We now have confirmation via email from Eqal that the comments regarding a Stickam chat are from Greg so we can assume the Stickam chat will take place at 4pm Pacific later today!!!!

43 comments:

  1. Dear Eqal, Why hast thou forsaken us, your most devoted of children?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Why was there never a DIRECT answer given to any of the concerns voiced on insideLG15 concerning the 'funding' issue?

    Why was the assumption made that these would simply be 'weekend' videos made with friends and family? (Would you REALLY want that to be inserted into the canon?) (More importantly: Do you REALLY believe that
    "...video submissions must also include an 8-week social show treatment that outlines your story, characters, and interactivity. Your treatment must incorporate all aspects of a social show." describes something that can fully be done in a 'weekend'?

    Why was there never a DIRECT answer given to any concerns by the community as to who owned the intellectual and physical property of the show?

    Since the series was to become canon, and be hosted on the main site/show page, and therefore create web traffic and revenue from Youtube and paid advertisements, does this mean that EQAL will receive a profit for showing the winning series while the creators of the series will not?

    If yes, in what form is this ethically fair?

    Furthermore, couldn't the profit gained from said web services been GIVEN to the winning series as reimbursement for the costs of production?

    Why was the 'update' announcing the Misfits withdrawal from the contest handled in such a strange and frankly disrespectful manner? Could you have simply announced 'creative differences' instead of revealing inside information?

    Has "The Misfits" crew been issued a NDA? Are they allowed to comment on the situation and present their side of the story?

    And, of course, most important of all:

    Are you EVER going to fix that horrible rendition of the forum? If not, can you just reactivate the old one? ...Please? It would take fifteen minutes, tops.

    ReplyDelete
  3. 1. Looking forward to TSIY-2 have you considered a business model where there might be an opportunity for revenue (profit) sharing if say a show brings in a sponsor. If so, could you talk a little about that model and explain how you envision it might work. If you have categorically ruled out any mechanism for sharing could you please state so clearly now and put an end to speculation once and for all.

    2. Have you considered any alternatives to the basic structure of TSIY that might encourage fans with show ideas to work together. I believe that one of the things Jenni and Logan brought to TSIY was an open willingness to work with others, but this was not really fully integrated into the design of the contest. Perhaps a contest is not even the best way to approach this in the first place. Are you willing tto discuss alternatives with the community and if so what mechanism do you propose for such a dialogue? A long time ago on mixed media immortal1 came up with some very productive suggestions but for some reason those fell on deaf ears. Now we have TSIY we need to consider what will lead to the most exciting and productive structure for creating it in a way that produces a great show and engages as many fans as possible in the creative process. What thoughts do you have on how you could better structure TSIY to achieve that goal?

    3. There was a lot of discussion about the use of copyrighted music in TSIY. Given that that would be illegal can you please clarify your position regarding the use of material copyrighted by anyone other than Eqal, Inc. for inclusion in TSIY?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Amen to anon at 10:17

    Here's one

    Is LG15 The Resistance being put on hold because of lack of funding, or lack of time? Or both? And do you have any plans to fix either?

    ReplyDelete
  5. My question, although I personally doubt that the person posting here is really Greg Goodfried:

    Given that an idiot like myself could have handled this situation better than you have handled it, may I please have $5 and the password to the lonelygirl15 account at YouTube?

    ReplyDelete
  6. ...The Misfits pilot has more views than the daily resistance episodes...




    ...just throwin that out there.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This is Greg, thanks Apo. I am glad you are much nicer to my wife than you are to me.

    ReplyDelete
  8. It's generally known that you solicit "friends of the show" to enter these contests. Did you solicit either eventual winner to enter?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Greg said: "We imagined that you, the community, would submit shows like lonefox, the facility, the coalition . . . shows that many of you are already doing for fun as a creative outlet in your spare time"

    Greg,

    "FacilityJ" and "The Coalition do not take place in the "LG15 Universe" and would not be eligible to enter the contest as it is currently constructed. Do you have any plans to extend the rules to be more inclusive of shows that take place within their own universe?

    The problem here is that Eqal was too slow to embrace community video series and shows like The Coalition moved on to create their on independent universe. If you actually want shows like that then you are going to have to be more flexible to include shows where their creators control all the intellectual property. This includes shows like highly the acclaimed 3rd Triad that has created its own Universe. Are you willing to do that or would you prefer to stick to your own closed LG15 Universe for LG15.com and TSIY?

    ReplyDelete
  10. If this is in fact Greg Goodfried (and a number of people in the community have questioned that premise), we are going to need some sort of official confirmation. You can either post on insideLG15 or send an email to [email protected]. We certainly do not want to set people up for another disappointment. Also we will need to know which Stickam channel you intend to use.

    Thanks, mm

    ReplyDelete
  11. OK. Just sent the email. Please don't post my email address. Just post that it was actually from me.

    ReplyDelete
  12. LG15today did receive an email from Eqal so the Stickam chat looks good to go.

    Thanks Greg, it was getting a little chaotic so that really helped a lot!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. As modelmotion has responsibly determined that Greg Goodfried is actually the individual posting here, I'd like to rephrase my question:

    Greg said: "This is Greg, thanks Apo. I am glad you are much nicer to my wife than you are to me."

    Greg, I can't begin to fathom why you would say such a thing. Attacking and demeaning your fans appears to be the new norm for EQAL. I wish you good luck with that. Here is my rephrased question:

    Given that you had such a great time in Poland with Miles and mastered the cow throwing thing while your devoted and charming wife was dealing with this contest here, why has it changed so radically upon your return?

    :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. I would like to clarify my earlier comment regarding "the facility". There are essentially 3 facilities. I believe one of these does take place in the LG15 Universe. FacilityJ on the other hand was once believed to be part of The Coalition but is now believed to be in its own independent universe. Then their is the Facility that still exists within the Coalition, which exists in its own Universe, and is believed to still be part of Red Territory which is completely outside the LG15 Universe. The only one that would be eligible for the contest as it was stated was the version that takes place within the LG15 Universe.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Thanks Greg for the nod to my friends in theCoalition. The reason we didn't participate has already been stated quite well by MM - theCoalition is a separate universe unto itself so we were contrained by the terms of the contest. Instead we threw our support behind the community projects that developed and came to fruition.

    That being said, at no time did we have any impression that there was a payment for services or other business arrangement to be had by the winner. EQAL was pretty clear from the beginning - the contest falls within the TOS, meaning that you have permission to use LG15 elements but they have no other obligation other than their statement that they would provide creative support for the winner to ensure that the story maintained some cohesiveness within the confines of the LG universe.

    I understand the ramifications for the Misfits - professional actors need to get paid. The best approach for them might very well be to solicit a sponsor for their series run. The LG platform would be an opportunity to gain exposure for the show and partner sponsor.

    Should the opportunity arise in the future for the shows within theCoalition universe to participate - we would certainly take up the challenge.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Amanda offered 'Virgil' to be a part of TSIY on many occasions, so does this mean that he would of worked for free?

    ReplyDelete
  17. hayley: i assumed virgil and lucy would have worked for free.

    ----

    ok, here are my questions for greg (mm i won't be on the chat this afternoon, anyone is free to pose these):

    1. Would you concede that it was not "very clear" that submitters had no chance of financial gain if the won TSIY?

    2. If Yes or Maybe, will you agree to fix this in the future by spelling out any rights to compensation in the contest announcement instead of referring people to the terms of use?

    3. here's a softball: Regardless of what happened, are you disappointed that it turned out this way?

    4. Is there, honestly, going to be any upgrades of the lg15.com forum introduced with the rollout of TSIY? (Such as private messaging)

    5. Many fans of the show were very disappointed with the functionality of the lg15:tr website, and that it essentially never improved. I assume this was not what you guys intended. What can you tell us about why this happened?

    6. Why didn't you ever admit you were the PM behind cassieiswatching? :-)

    ReplyDelete
  18. I really do not understand why this has become such a large issue. People were upset that The Misfits won thinking Jenni had an unfair advantage with access to actors and "professional" equipment.

    Now that The Misfits will not be shown anymore, people are upset.

    By simply reading over the Terms of Services located on Eqal.com, all these questions could have been answers. Simply going to http://www.eqal.com/terms/ and checking section 6. All "intellectual property" questions are answered there.

    It is sad that people are attacking Greg. Show some respect in how you talk to him, he has never attacked any of us, there is no need to attack him.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Sept it's not that simple. There were people who thought Jenni winning was unfair, but there were also (maybe more) people who thought the Misfits should win and anything else would be a travesty.

    One of the issues with me is the way in which the press release/blog was written. Jenni, Logan, Max & Becki are people we know and have grown to care about. The blog seemed a little unfair & mean spirited towards them when written.

    ReplyDelete
  20. to add to my comment:

    http://inside.lg15.com/2008/12/16/lg15-the-show-is-yours-submit-your-pilot/

    check the fourth bullet under "If Chosen"

    ReplyDelete
  21. Veela, maybe it is just me, but I did not take the entry concerning The Misfits not doing TSIY as an attack on them. IDK, this all seems a little over the top and people are grasping at straws because they want a show NOW and not a show created by the fans. LG15 gave us 3 awesome years of a show, sometimes things come to an end. I hope it comes back, and soon, but I appreciate the years of time they put into a great show.
    Again, this is jusy my opinion.

    ReplyDelete
  22. this is interesting:

    greg said among his comments last night:

    ""If I am wrong, I apologize, but we were NEVER asked by any of the entrants if we would finance any of the shows."

    but lookie here:
    http://inside.lg15.com/2008/12/16/lg15-the-show-is-yours-submit-your-pilot/#comments

    # Jenni Powell Says:
    December 16th, 2008 at 3:33 pm

    Will there be any sort of monetary compensation for the picked pilot and subsequent 8 week run of the series? Because that is a lot of work to be done!

    I’m just concerned that a lot of quality ideas may not make it to the table for fear of the time commitment involved.

    ---

    there was no public response to this question in the comment thread.

    ReplyDelete
  23. Milo, thing is, the TOS clearly state no financial compensation would be given. Why answer a question if there is already an answer posted?

    ReplyDelete
  24. Sept I am not being rude to the Cs or grasping for the straws, and I think everyone who knows me knows I would be the last to do that.

    I have only critiqued the handling of the information release, I'm waiting for further information to pass judgment. I always try to be quite respectful.

    ReplyDelete
  25. Can someone post a transcript or audio file of today's stickam event? Some people may not be able to get to it but would also like some answers. thx

    ReplyDelete
  26. sept2star: "Milo, thing is, the TOS clearly state no financial compensation would be given. Why answer a question if there is already an answer posted?"

    Why answer it? To avoid exactly where we are today.

    I think there is an arguable amibiguity in the contest terms that could have sparked jenni's question. personally, i never thought there would be compensation - that was my understanding though it wasn't crystal clear to me. it just seems odd that jenni would have proceeded with the pilot without getting some kind of response to her question, ya know?

    ReplyDelete
  27. Allow me to put a disclaimer here and now before I go on with my comments. I am in no way saying this happened, just that this is a potential thought.

    There is a growing sense of entitlement among people today. Not just in this case, but in general. Its not just among spoiled children, who don't know how good they have it compared to "back in my day". So there is the slight potential for, "since I have the resources to make a better show, outside what's anticipated for this type of contest, I deserve to get paid for it." When they didn't it fractured an already fractured community further. On the other side of that we have the "We've already destroyed the communities spirit when it comes to user generated content, fan fic, or whatever the non insulting use of fan generated content is now so lets throw them a bone. We expect them to stick to our non existent continuity - that we openly change at will, for the offer of the use of our name, and that should be enough. We've worked hard for that name so we're entitled to treat people this way."

    (incidentally these thoughts are much more cohesive in my addled brain than they may read, for that I apologize, but then again, I'm entitled...)

    ReplyDelete
  28. First, my question for Greg:

    Is there going to be a replacement for the "runner-up" to be integrated into "The Last" (like The Last was to be in The Misfits)? I know people like Milo, Randy, and everyone else who entered a show (including myself) would really like to know.


    Second (to everyone on this thread):

    Honestly, Amanda gave out her email (well, actually, it was a different e-mail address that re-directed to hers) asking specifically for any questions about the pilots or the work that had to be put into them to avoid a situation like this.

    Personally, I took advantage of that option and e-mailed her at LEAST 7 or 8 times asking questions about things such as what they use for lighting, file types for uploading, ****whether there would be compensation**** and a variety of other production questions, and she responded back to me, usually that same day. It was made clear that there would be no compensation (both through my personal e-mail, and as Sept said, in the post), and since I was a bit confused, all I needed to do was ASK like they wanted us to. So, if people were really confused about compensation, and were expecting to get it, then they should have saved the time in producing the show and just ASKED via the e-mail address that they said to e-mail questions to in order to find out. People obviously weren't as confused as they are acting now, because if they were, then they would have sent Amanda an email.




    I'm sorry for this mini rant, but I'm not trying to be mean. It's hard to tell over the interweb, but I'm really not trying to yell or anything :-)

    ReplyDelete
  29. (repost of comment on insidelg15)
    This really sucks. Don’t get me wrong, I think that LG15: The Last will be phenomenal, and I have been looking forward to it, but I was also looking forward to the Misfits.

    I’m assuming this means that the project won’t be pursued. If that’s the case, is the pilot that was produced still a part of the LG15 canon, because if it is not, it will definitely cause some confusion, as Taylor and Spencer are canon characters. Perhaps an agreement could be reached so that 3-5 videos could be produced (a mini-series if you will). I know that a lot of people would be willing to contribute to see the project, at least partially, go forward, perhaps functioning as a special set of videos that take place between Seasons One and Two of the Resistance (like those Jumper videos were for Seasons 2 and 3 of lonelygirl15). I know Jenni has been able to produce a series of quality videos in the past (a la Lonelyjew15), so I’m confident that they could be made awesome even without a big budget.

    (end of repost)

    1. Is there any chance at all that LG15: The Misfits could be resurrected, even in the shorted form I suggested above? If so, Could a dialogue be reopened between EQAL and Misfits?

    2. If Misfits is dead and in way coming back, Is the pilot that was produced still Canon?

    3. If Misfits is dead and in way coming back, will a new runner-up be announced as The Last was bumped up to winner?

    ReplyDelete
  30. I have one more question. Does anyone know what stickam channel it will be on? "lgfifteen"?

    ReplyDelete
  31. So for questions to ask:

    Is there anything remotely salvageable?

    And do they have any changes/regrets about their original statement and how would they correct that?

    ReplyDelete
  32. Here's my question:

    When you were choosing the Misfits, why did you not contact them ahead of time to make sure they knew all of what you're telling us now? In light of having actors that you are used to paying, it would seem a major assumption on your part that they would do a full 8-week show as "just a favor."

    Another question, though it's been asked before: Why was your update about TSIY so mean spirited? Regardless of its intentions, it reads like an insult.

    ReplyDelete
  33. I'm not really understanding the whole TOS thing. When one signs up for the LG15.com website, they agree to follow the terms of service. Heck, just by being on the site, one needs to abide by the TOS. So why is it that there are "unclear rules" when it was both said in the rules slightly, and put into detail in the terms. Now, before entering a contest, one should ALWAYS read the terms of service. Even I read them. So why is it that when one enters a contest and misconstrues instructions given to them by the official rules, AND the Terms of Service in which they agreed to abide by when using the LG15 site or participating in any activities or competitions hosted by EQAL, EQAL is blamed and not those who improperly assumed that there would be financial compensation. It should never be assumed that money would just be given to someone and one should do only that of what they can afford. People should always read the rules before they agree to them. I'm not understanding why the arguments are arising now against EQAL. This is due to the, of lack of a better term (and of no offense to Logan or Jenni,) ignorance on the part of the Misfits to just think that they wouldn't have to fund anything. This is a double standard. Why is the community making such a big deal over funding The Misfits, but not funding The Last, hmmm? Just because something may cost more does not mean that it should break the rules to compensate financially than those who cost less. I guess I'm just not getting this. That is my 2¢.

    Just to let you know, this was a lot more convincing when I typed it. There would be a lot of emphasis and hand movements if I read it aloud.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Oops, sorry. The 1:01 anon post is me.

    ReplyDelete
  35. I honestly didn't think Greg's post was spiteful at all. He's right; the community is smart and we don't like NOT getting answers, and if he simply cited "creative differences," fans would have torn him apart. I appreciate that he gave us a reason, which leads into my questions.

    1. Why is TSIY even happening? You said, "We imagined that you, the community, would submit shows like lonefox, the facility, the coalition...," but, I don't watch those shows because they're not the quality of your social show. I want to see a professional story with professionals creating it. I don't want to watch some people with a cheap camera filming for fun. It's great that they're doing it, but I don't want to watch it, let alone have it be integrated into the canon. Why would you want to cheapen to lg15 experience by inserting lack-luster stories?

    2. I know I'm not the only one that feels this way, and many have voiced their negative opinions about TSIY. The only people I've seen excited about this contest are the people that entered and the people that were pumped about The Misfits. If the community is obviously responding so negatively, why would you say, "Since everyone responded so positively, we're going to do it again!" No one wants that! Everyone wants to see Season 2 of The Resistance.

    3. Why have we not gotten ANY information on Season 2 of The Resistance? In the latest Stickam chat, someone asked about TR, HG, and N1, and Amanda shrugged it off and said, "Nah, we don't have any information about that." We want information about that! We want to watch quality things! I don't understand why no one gets that.

    4. What's going on with Season 2 of TR? If this gets answered, I will be wholly amazed.

    ReplyDelete
  36. Thad that post was made AFTER the original post. The original post, on it's own read quite spiteful. The latter post by Greg was much kinder. Read the first one and consider it by itself then you'll understand.

    (Honestly I'm not trying to fuel the drama, but answer Thad's question)

    ReplyDelete
  37. I read them in order, but upon reading the earlier one again, I can see why people are upset. I'm not sure if it's fair to accuse them of be spiteful, after all, it's text, and it's difficult to read mood through text. I feel like Jenni or Logan's comment, "We will tell you that big names in the web video community were lining up to be on our show, and it is unfortunate that we cannot bring together this high-powered concept to reality." seemed rather unnecessary, ("Look what you could have had! Too bad EQAL's not giving us money!") but I could be entirely wrong.

    Still, even if Greg was being spiteful, it's not fair to make comments simply attacking HIM, such as Apo's comment above, along with some of the anons. If you don't like EQAL, don't watch EQAL. I understand that a lot of these fans have been here longer than I have, and feel like they're PART of EQAL, but at the end of the day, EQAL can do what they want. Either resolve to go along with it, or quit.

    ReplyDelete
  38. Because, Randy - people wanted to see the Misfits.

    No offense to the Last, but the Misfits was the show that people wanted to see happen. And anyone who assumes Spencer and Taylor were going to work for eight weeks for free is ignorant.

    If EQAL didn't have the money to pay their actors - DON'T PICK THE MISFITS.

    You forget it was EQAL's choice to have the Misfits win. How hard was it to have a meeting BEFORE the live announcement and iron it out? That's what ANY OTHER production company would do. You work out the business before you issue a press release.

    Amanda made a very very stupid mistake by having the live announcement before meeting with these people and making sure there were no problems.

    ReplyDelete
  39. That may be true, Anon. I agree with you that Amanda should have met with the winners before hand. She has actually done that with the past two contests I have won.

    But I do not see why it is ignorant on EQAL's part. Sure, people may have wanted to see The Misfits, but that should not be the downfall on EQAL's part. It was The Misfits that made out a check they can't cash. And for people to think that EQAL should pay them for the actors isn't right. It is to those whom produce it that would be responsible for the actors. If another pilot hired actors to appear in the series and EQAL did not compensate that series to pay the actors, people wouldn't be overreacting. Face it. This all about Taylor and Spencer. People are just sad because they want to see Taylor and Spencer in a show. So just because you want something that the producers can't afford, don't go complaining about the company because you want them to pay for it. They don't have to pay for it. They never said they were going to pay for it. So don't assume that it was going to be payed for!

    I'm sorry, but if someone can convince me of a logical reason of why EQAL is in the oven for this, let me know.

    And think of it like this: maybe EQAL has learned from this. Maybe they see how much the Taylor and Spencer characters have affected the communities feeling and bring them back in the second season of The Resistance.

    ReplyDelete
  40. I created an account on stickam called "eqal" and will be using that for the chat.

    ReplyDelete
  41. Thanks Greg and good luck with the show!

    meep

    ReplyDelete
  42. I want someone from The Misfits to answer my questions.

    When were you told you were getting funding?
    How did you know you would get the amount you needed?
    Why would you make an entry for the contest knowing you needed money but have no idea whether you were going to get it or not?

    ReplyDelete
  43. Can the show that came third be featured on LG15.com too? I was really looking forward to 2 shows.

    ReplyDelete




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