Here at Oasis we are very much in support of playlists. Most days you find our developers working to the tunes of themed playlists that range from classic rock to hip-hip or even the obscure artist specific playlist (These mainly include Canadian themed rock bands that go by the name of Rush.) So you can see we are definitely fans of the playlist and have no ill will towards them.
Now enter the challenge. An existing Brightcove customer approached us with an interesting request. The video focused site, KarmaloopTV.com, had managed all their video content buckets by creating specific playlists that adhered to certain product and category themes. While creating playlists was a valid solution for their site’s requirements, it also meant that the video team not only had to manage content at the individual video level, but also maintain playlists on an ongoing basis in order to keep their site up to date.
The Oasis development team was able to utilize the existing video tagging system to transform the site from a manual, playlist-driven experience, to an automated, content delivery system for visitors. We first created a navigation structure that content editors could manage to expose any tag that they wanted to highlight, for example as their flagship video series “The Daily Loop” or they could even be as granular as a specific artists’ name like “Kid Cudi”. This allowed content editors the flexibility to manage not only the items and order that appeared in the site’s navigation, but also relate each element to their video content more easily.
We powered this capability by making every link search for videos by tapping into Brightcove’s robust API. Brightcove offers all the necessary querying tools to search for videos by text or tag and sort them by date or total plays. The system relays this information in JSON format, which means it’s lean and fast and can keep up with the constant demands of a popular website. Having the power to simplify the labor for content editors and streamline their tasks allowed Karmaloop to focus more on what they’re good at: creating high quality video content and appeasing their fans with fast turnaround on the hottest news and fashions.
About Oasis
Founded in 2001, Oasis is a leading interactive advertising agency that provides sophisticated digital strategy and creative design that blends the latest technologies to power cutting-edge experiences for its clients and their customers. With offices in Boston, New York and San Francisco, Oasis’ expertise is rooted in its technical background, which drives the team to create relevant and brand-enhancing digital experiences.
Brendon Buckley
Project Manager
Oasis
