FORA.tv
December 6th, 2007
Rating: 
What do they say it is?
“FORA.tv delivers discourse, discussions and debates on the world’s most interesting political, social and cultural issues, and enables viewers to join the conversation. It provides deep, unfiltered content, tools for self-expression and a place for the interactive community to gather online(…) enables a new, global media opportunity by aggregating a daily range of events, produced and electronically shipped by institutions or freelance producers, from around the world.”
What do I say it is?
A top I.Q. multimedia soapbox, where we can find the ideas of “poets, authors, policy experts, activists, madmen, government leaders, visionary thinkers”. A showroom for brilliance and discussion, in various topics from health to religion, from politics to arts. Video is privileged.
What’s great about it?
The content, the huge amount of videos for a so called beta version, and the number of posts at the forums. The quality of the videos seems to be pretty good also. And we must point out the will to open the site to various subjects and origins (geographical too). The team running the site is top notch. No amateurs here.
What could be better?
The organization of the website is a bit confusing, but they say they’re working on it. And what makes it great for some will be a put down for others, because it can look a bit elitist.
How is it going to make money?
This appears to be well funded, and they have advertisements from big companies, that also promote some of the events displayed on the website. Example: Pfizer.
Should I pay it any attention?
If you’re interested in think tanks, lectures, debates, and sky level arguments, fora.tv is for you. It can become a reference for specialized journalists and experts.
Entry Filed under: video
1 Comment Add your own
1. nicolas. | December 7th, 2007 at 1:15 pm
As you’re writing, the site clearly targets a highly educated audience. Such elitism might be deliberate, as a way to attract sponsors.
The non-embeddable character of the videos on the site and its lack of accessibility might also be an aspect of this policy. After all, there’s no reason they should want their interviews of rich, intelligent and fancy-dressed people to be embedded on a conspiracy theorist’s blog.
If they have something to lose (and little to gain as they don’t have advertisers but ‘featured partners’ and ‘sponsors’) from opening up, they’re no reason they shouldn’t protect their content. I wonder how sustainable an approach of the web that is.
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