Chapter 156: The Quiet Arrival of MTV

While consolidating resources, Barry Diller discovered something quite intriguing that his boss had set up earlier. The cable TV station was actually surrounding its operations around MTV, and apparently, it was developing quite well.

William White was having a tough time because he didn't have a ready film library. The idea of creating something like HBO was a pipe dream; it would cost a fortune without any guarantee of success.

MTV, however, was different. Though William White also had a record company, he didn't have any artists yet. Obviously, he wasn't going to sing himself. As there was no fierce competition, other record companies also showed interest in this form of promotion.

During that era, music programs weren't as interesting as they would become later on. If there was a bit of stage footage, that was considered good. As for turning it into a micro-movie model, no one was doing that.

The so-called MTV was quite literally misnamed, but that didn't matter. William White had plenty of time and enough staff to help him complete the shoots.

How to shoot them? That was pretty straightforward. William White acquired the adaptation rights to some music, and started writing scripts for music short films.

As for who would do the filming? That was even simpler. What's the purpose of a film school? There's no shortage of talent there. For just a small fee, a ton of people would join in.

The prize for first place was 10,000 bucks, second place 5,000, and third place 3,000, with no limit on the number of winners for each prize. This MTV production award was an internal one, only open to students of the University of Southern California. Basically, it meant, "Go ahead, shoot all you can. We'll cover the costs, and if your work's good, you might make a little extra."

Is 3,000 bucks a small amount? Not really. Some people were making just about 500 a month. Inflation was a real problem, and later when people earned 5,000 bucks a month, it didn't necessarily go further than the current 500 did.

...

"Hey, boss, you're not making it that big, are you?"

William White chuckled, a bit puzzled. "Jason, what big thing? I haven't heard anything."

"You've got to be kidding! Cameras are all rented out, and a whole bunch of folks are starting to form production teams."

"No way. You'd better go tell them not to do duplicate work."

"They're not that dumb, boss. Is it true that everyone gets a prize?"

"Yep, unless your piece is totally out of whack. Then you can't blame me."

"Alright, I know what to say."

Knowing this guy had a good relationship with William White, many classmates naturally wanted to understand what was happening.

Don't underestimate these kids. College students of this era were truly the darlings of their time, the same everywhere.

What's a film school for?

Isn't it to cultivate this bunch of folks?

Kicking off with a chance to make a movie?

Ha! Have you even woken up yet? Shooting a commercial is more like it. What are you daydreaming about?

Now the opportunity was here. Yet, capturing the essence of a song in three to five minutes surely made one's head hurt.

William White wrote two scripts for them to film first. If they couldn't do that, they might as well go back to class.

Film school professors seriously taught how to make such productions. William White was responsible enough, as he not only wrote shot-by-shot scripts but also described the scenes. If you still couldn't shoot it, it's best to consider a different career.

Hmm, it actually seems pretty interesting.

...

When compared to those stage images, the difference between good and bad became quite apparent. Many record companies also noticed this change. The reasoning was simple; their old records were suddenly hot sellers again. The research company's conclusion was also simple: MTV.

Holy moly, it's not that expensive.

So what are you waiting for? Isn't the film school crew pretty idle? Let's shoot a couple of videos and drag that singing fool over here. How could they pass up such a publicity chance? What a moron.

There's truth to the saying "more hands make light work." If William White had to handle this alone, it would never have gained traction. But now, all those outdated recordings were tossed into the trash.

Are we talking high quality here? Heck, no. According to William White, it was all junk. But that's just his opinion; TV viewers clearly had different ideas.

Barry Diller didn't see it coming. After resource integration, this MTV project, which the boss had always valued, suddenly took off. Initially, the viewership was only in the tens of thousands. Now what was he seeing? Three million!

Don't think it's that easy. There were too many TV stations in this era. Even Disney's viewership was in the millions. Only top shows surpassed ten million, and no TV station would ignore that.

Now, although it's three million, you must acknowledge the fact that the station hasn't been around very long. Not long ago, the viewership was in the tens of thousands or even lower.

And what were people saying back then?

William White's Waterloo.

Pfft, the fellow might not even have known he owned such a TV station. See what happened after integration? It just exploded! Barry Diller really did have it figured out.

Such remarks were even embarrassing for Barry Diller. He didn't do anything! When you see NBC's follow-up moves, don't pin it on me.

He knew well how MTV became popular. The boss didn't spend much money. Not only were film students grateful to him, but their professors were also quite pleased.

...

"To commemorate the birthplace of the first MTV, an MTV Awards Ceremony will be held every April 28. The award selection committee will have three parts: professional media, the National Recording Association, and the University of Southern California. Professional judges will have 60% of the votes, with the remaining 40% determined by the audience."

Well, USC was forcibly tied in, though they were happy about it. As for the music association, you could try skipping it. This was just being considerate. If they refused, they better not complain in the future. 

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