“If someone is saying: I want to do webisodes, I want to produce a series of two-minute comedy shorts and I want to make a lot of money with advertising, I’d say: ‘You’re probably not, but good luck”, says Evan Spiridellis, co-founder of JibJab.com.

With the rush to work out a means of ‘monetizing’ online content, creators of every stripe are grasping for working models. Brothers Evan and Gregg Spiridellis of JibJab.com, creators of massively viral, absolutely hilarious online short videos and eCards, have broken the code for themselves and in doing so, are paving the way for others to follow.

Jibjab.com monetizes its content through a mix of subscriptions, digital download sales, ads and partnerships with major brands like OfficeMax. This hasn’t always been their deal; originally, they sought exclusive distro deals with giants such as Yahoo and MSN, but opted to drop the strategy in favor of having content on as many platforms as possible, including Facebook. “YouTube put a bullet in that brain,” says Gregg Spiridellis. “There (are) no more exclusive distribution deals in a post-YouTube world.” “We are happy to be a network as opposed to a destination,” Gregg explains.

Scott Kirsner of Cinema Tech recently interviewed the Brothers Spiridellis in their studio. The results is a great chat covering JibJab’s New Media style of branding, user-focused creative tools, distribution and their recent connection with Facebook Connect, allowing massive interplay with fans eager to create and distribute their own videos using JibJab’s platform. It’s an awesome opportunity to hear from these guys how they got started, where they are now and where they see themselves in the future. Check it!
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