DVWN

DVWN, LLC

Type	Privately Held
Founded	July 21, 2006
Headquarters	Wilmington, North Carolina, U.S.
Key people	David Julius, CEO
Industry	Internet TV
Slogan	Schedule-Free, Ad-Free, Censor-Free... Pure Entertainment
Website	DVWN.com
Type of site	video on demand
Launched	May 12, 2007
Current status	active

DVWN (Digital Video Worldwide Network) is an independent online video network. Catering largely to a male demographic 18-49, DVWN.com offers an array of professional full-length content including original series, exploitation films, rare concerts, TV shows, and extreme sports. All programming is delivered via streaming video on-demand (in 24 hr passes) in DVD quality with no downloads necessary. On May 21, 2008, DVWN reported 2 million unique viewings since their inception.^[1]

Platform

DVWN's platform differs from its main competitor Hulu in several key ways. Rather than being ad-supported, shows are sold individually for a minimal fee (currently 99 cents) with no advertising at all on the site or the videos themselves. Their programming is completely uncensored with such offerings as uncut, unrated versions of cult movies and stand-up comedy, adult animation, and extreme sports (hardcore wrestling, catfights, etc...). All content is independently produced, meaning not affiliated with the major Hollywood studios and is thus widely available around the world.

Videos are offered in Flash Video format at 480p60 or EDT (enhanced definition television). DVWN’s “watch instantly” video requires no additional player installation or downloads of any kind and works seeminglessly with Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari and Google Chrome on any PC. The release of Version 3.0^[2] made available full screen video capability, advanced one-click sharing, and one-step purchasing with automated playback.

History

Founded by David Julius (CEO) and Richard Trusky (CTO), DVWN launched in May 2007 with select original programming (adult animations Mario The Monkey ^[3] and Cooking With Bigfoot ^[4]) to a limited audience. Soon DVWN began acquiring name titles (first were Evil Dead Trap^[5] with Synapse Films and Look Who It Isn't by Zack Galifianakis in July 2007) while expanding their platform and bandwidth capabilities. In December 2007, DVWN raised $3 million in angel investment. After one full year in beta, DVWN launched a fully scaled version 2.0 on May 11, 2008 with nearly 100 titles. Improving on its highly acclaimed Web 2.0 interface, DVWN released Version 3.0 on September 19, 2008, emphasizing enhanced high-quality video and audio and an intuitive interface for an elegant and immersive user experience. DVWN is currently producing several new original series and plans to debut its first live event in early 2010.

References

1. ^ "Internet TV Leader Emerges" (Press release). PRWeb. 2008-05-21. http://www.prweb.com/releases/internettv/digitalvideo/prweb959924.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 
2. ^ "Maverick Online Video-On-Demand Network DVWN Releases Version 3.0" (Press release). PRWeb. 2008-09-19. http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/9/prweb1348494.htm. Retrieved 2008-09-24. 
3. ^ "Mario The Monkey". DVWN. 2007-05-11. http://www.dvwn.com/index141.html. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 
4. ^ "Cooking With Bigfoot". DVWN. 2007-05-11. http://www.dvwn.com/index142.html. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 
5. ^ "Evil Dead Trap". Youtube. 2007-08-27. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewi6FAaI1DM. Retrieved 2008-07-25. 

External links

• DVWN website