or


[09/09/10 - 09:49 AM]
Nbc, Jetset Studios and Telefon Projekt Dial Up Viewers with Virtual Call Center for New NBC Comedy Series 'Outsourced'
The application allows web users to enter their phone number and immediately receive a telephone call from the Mid America Novelties call center.

[via press release from NBC]

NBC, JETSET STUDIOS AND TELEFON PROJEKT DIAL UP VIEWERS WITH VIRTUAL CALL CENTER FOR NEW NBC COMEDY SERIES 'OUTSOURCED'

Interactive Promotional Campaign Uses Breakthrough Technology to Simulate Real-Time Video Chat

UNIVERSAL CITY, Calif. - September 9, 2010 - NBC, Jetset Studios and Telefon Projekt jointly have launched a cutting-edge virtual call center experience to promote "Outsourced," the network's new workplace comedy series about catalog-based company Mid America Novelties, whose call center has suddenly been outsourced to India. The application, available at www.midamericanovelties.com, allows web users to enter their phone number and immediately receive a telephone call from the Mid America Novelties call center. "Outsourced" premieres on NBC on Thursday, September 23 (9:30-10 p.m. ET).

Innovative "simulated video chat" technology will synch the video being played on users' computers with the audio being played over their phones, allowing for a real-time, interactive conversation with show's own Rajiv (Rizwan Manji), Gupta (Parvesh Cheena) and Todd (Ben Rappaport) on the computer screen.

Additionally, every user will receive a free "virtual good" that can be shared with friends via Facebook.

"We are always looking for innovative ways to engage and interact with viewers, and the virtual call center creates an opportunity to do that," said Adam Stotsky, president of marketing, NBC Entertainment. "It also provides a unique way for us to introduce the characters and the show and then reward users with a virtual gift they can pass to friends as an invitation to share in the experience."

The "Outsourced" application was conceived by Jetset Studios, an award-winning transmedia marketing agency and original content production house.

Jetset, in collaboration with Telefon Projekt, designed, wrote, and produced the original content featured in the experience. Telefon Projekt, whose technology lets content producers create conversations between real people and virtual characters, developed 'simulated video chat' in partnership with Jetset.

"We are thrilled to introduce this next generation interactive experience to promote NBC's 'Outsourced'," said Russell Scott, CEO of Jetset Studios.

Patrick Young, Jetset Studios' president, agrees: "With its outrageous comedy, 'Outsourced' is the perfect complement to this cutting edge technology."

"Conversation - whether spoken or text exchanges - is the most natural interface ever devised," said Tony Sheeder, co-founder of Telefon Projekt. "Everyone has vast experience talking to other people, and we realized that using conversation to interact with stories allows us to create very powerful, very intimate experiences that blur the line between fiction and reality.

The application lives on MidAmericaNovelties.com, "Outsourced's" "in-universe" site on NBC.com. For fans interested in the latest products from Mid America Novelties -- from the bacon wallet to the beer guzzler hat -- the site offers big laughs and a hilarious take on the show.

###

For more information, visit http://www.nbc.com/outsourced/.

NBC Entertainment develops and schedules programming for the network's primetime, late-night, and daytime schedules. NBC's quality programs and balanced lineup have earned the network critical acclaim, numerous awards, and ratings success. The network has earned more Emmy Awards than any network in television history.

NBC's roster of popular scripted series includes critically acclaimed comedies like Emmy winners "The Office," starring Steve Carell, and "30 Rock," starring Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey. Veteran, award-winning dramas on NBC include the "Law & Order" brand, and "Chuck." Unscripted series for NBC include the hits "The Biggest Loser," "The Celebrity Apprentice" and "America's Got Talent."

NBC is #1 in late night's key ratings races with "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon," "Last Call with Carson Daly" and "Saturday Night Live." NBC Daytime's "Days of our Lives" consistently finishes among daytime's top programs in the valuable women 18-34 category. Saturday mornings the network broadcasts Qubo on NBC, a three-hour block that features fun, entertaining, and educational programming for kids, including the award-winning, 3-D animated series "Veggie Tales."

For more information visit www.nbc.com.

About Jetset Studios

Jetset Studios is an award winning transmedia marketing agency and original content production house. Fueled by a near-obsessive love of pop culture and wholeheartedly dedicated to all things Geek, Jetset Studios makes magic on any platform for the most recognizable brands.

The agency was founded in 2001 by Russell Scott and Patrick Young, who have developed original scripted content and transmedia experiences in support of dozens of feature films, including Tropic Thunder, The Hangover and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and hit television shows like The Closer. They also win lots of awards and are fun at parties. For more information, visit http://www.jetsetstudios.com/, @jetsetstudios, http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Jetset-Studios/12598023689?ref=ts

About Telefon Projekt

Telefon Projekt is an entertainment and technology company whose proprietary platform lets publishers build experiences in which conversations - actual spoken dialog or text input -- between real people and fictional or virtual characters impact the direction of a narrative.

The conversations can be integrated with any content that can be delivered over the internet, allowing what a person says to control what's seen onscreen. For more information, visit www.telefonprojekt.com.





  [september 2010]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
   


· OUTSOURCED (NBC)





[10/08/26 - 03:32 PM]
CBS All-"NCIS" Tuesday Premieres +39% Higher Than Last Year
"NCIS," the series premiere of "NCIS: New York," and "NCIS: Origins" were the night's top three most-watched scripted broadcast programs.

[10/08/26 - 02:26 PM]
ABC News Wins in Late Night and Friday Night
"20/20: Home Alone" ranked as the Friday's No. 1 newsmagazine in Total Viewers, Adults 25-54, and Adults 18-49 on Friday, October 2.

[10/08/26 - 02:01 PM]
HBO Orders New Drama Series "Crazy Rich Asians"
Based on the global bestselling books written by Kevin Kwan, the series will pick up after the events of the blockbuster film that became the highest-grossing Hollywood studio romantic comedy at the North American box office in nearly a decade.

[10/08/26 - 01:50 PM]
All the Marvel Television and Marvel Animation News from New York Comic Con 2026
Highlights include "Zodiac," a brand-new Marvel Television series that will debut on Disney+ in 2028.

[10/08/26 - 01:03 PM]
Video: "Apocalypse Z: New World" - Official Trailer - Prime Video
A rabies-like disease spreads across the planet, transforming people into aggressive creatures.

[10/08/26 - 11:25 AM]
"Jimmy Kimmel Live" Leads Late Night with Live Shows from Brooklyn Academy of Music
The series topped late-night for the second week in a row this season, scoring 2.66 million Total Viewers and a 0.27 rating among Adults 18-49.

[10/08/26 - 11:15 AM]
"Dexter: Resurrection" Surprises NYCC Fans with an Early Screening of Season Two Ahead of October 30 Premiere on Paramount+
The panel featured stars Michael C. Hall, Uma Thurman, James Remar, Jack Alcott, Bokeem Woodbine and Krysten Ritter, alongside showrunner and executive producer Clyde Phillips, executive producers Scott Reynolds and Marcos Siega, and surprise guest Eric Stonestreet.

[10/08/26 - 11:01 AM]
Jennifer Coolidge Returns for Season Two of "The Watcher"
Coolidge joins the previously announced returning cast: Naomi Watts (Nora Brannock), Bobby Cannavale (Dean Brannock), Margo Martindale (Maureen "Mo"), and Isabel Gravitt (Ellie Brannock).

[10/08/26 - 10:51 AM]
Lifetime Greenlights New Ripped from the Headlines Movie "The Girl Who Disappeared" (wt) Starring Jaime Pressly, Casey Deidrick and Alexa Blair
Based on a true story, the film follows a young woman whose romance with a married man sets off a dangerous chain of obsession, jealousy and betrayal.

[10/08/26 - 10:31 AM]
First Look & Date Announcement: Hulu's "The Land"
"The Land," from "Paradise" and "This Is Us" creator Dan Fogelman, premieres on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers in the US, and Disney+ internationally on February 15.

[10/08/26 - 10:01 AM]
Video: "Grey's Anatomy" - Season 23 Official Trailer on ABC
New beginnings, complicated relationships and high-stakes emergencies await at Grey Sloan.

[10/08/26 - 10:00 AM]
The Soul Train Awards Nominees Are In, and Fans Decide the Winners in Two New Categories!
For the first time, fans will have a say in who takes home the trophies, with two new fan-voted categories: R&B/Soul Song of the Year, with voting on BET.com and Spotify's RNB X International Artist, with voting in the Spotify app.

[10/08/26 - 09:01 AM]
AspireTV to Premiere "A Memorable Christmas" Dec. 4
Asia'h Epperson, Mike Merrill, Kamel Goffin, and Stephen Cofield Jr. star in the movie.

[10/08/26 - 09:01 AM]
Prime Video Orders Untitled Karen Read Series from Justin Noble, Inspired by the Hit Law&Crime and Audible Original Podcast Series "Karen," Starring and Executive Produced by Four-Time Emmy Nominee Elizabeth Banks
The series follows the trial that captivated the country and turned Read into a household name.

[10/08/26 - 08:54 AM]
FOX Nation Set to Premiere "Houdini: Back from the Dead," Marking Platform's First Full-Length Project Created Entirely with AI-Generated Imagery
The new three-part series will premiere Wednesday, October 14.