Again -- I couldn't be everywhere at once and had to catch my flight back to NYC in the afternoon, but here is my attempt to summarize what I was able to see on day two of the Ypulse Mashup. We added some more blog posts/coverage that keeps popping up to our roundup post and finished uploading our photos to Flickr. Kicking the day off bright and early, day two of the Mashup was chock-full of fantastic panels, keynotes, and case studies.

MTV Rocking the Youth Vote 2.0 Style

We heard from Ian Rowe, Senior Vice President, Public Affairs and Strategic Partnerships, MTV, and Carl Brown, California Citizen Journalist, MTV Street Team '08, that while there is more interest than ever before in this year's presidential race, local issues are what resonate more with younger voters, i.e. what's happening in their back yard. In response, MTV has created a citizen journalism program to tell these local stories. These video stories are also being distributed by the Associated Press. They showed an example of a local story in southern California about how young activists were fighting the development of a new highway that would have altered the local eco-system. One attendee asked if MTV makes an attempt to show "the other side" in these reports -- the response was not so much in individual reports but more in shaping the project as a whole. We couldn't help but notice how much the CJ story looked like what's happening over at Current TV...

Emerging Teen Technology

Bill Carter, from Fuse Marketing (anchor sponsor for the event), presented results from a survey they did of senior technology executives from companies such as Sony, MTV Networks, Yahoo, and Nokia to find out what's next for teens. They heard that content is what's most important, and that technology should never be use for its own sake without something real to say. The tone of the content is the next most important aspect, and then comes how technology is used to disseminate the content or message. Only half of the brands that are using technology as a platform are backing it up with a real message. Before a company decides to use technology, they need to ask why they want a mobile campaign (side note: I just saw a website banner for a Listerine promo offering a free music download - what a random way to draw in potential users of mouthwash!).

Handheld devices will surpass and potentially replace the desktop. The iPhone is just the beginning of the all in one device. Yet despite the handheld's key feature (allowing teens to be untethered from a desk), only 20% of teens have a smartphone. Other platforms will save -- not kill -- TV networks. Device is inconsequential compared to content, because they are in the content-creation business; they can thrive with technology. Analog-to-digital conversion will soon make it possible to watch live TV on portable devices.

Geo-targeting will go mobile, and the analysis of four billion IP addresses provides street-level targeting. Combine this new technology with teens giving advertisers "permission" to market to them, and growth could be exponential, resulting in continuous, relevant ads and content based on teens' location and interests.

The evolution of music online is just beginning. CD retail sales are declining, but there's growth and more to come in online downloads. Subscriptions (the cable model) will soon rule. There will soon be more than 65 million cable TV subscribers, and cable providers (and iTunes!) will offer unlimited downloads.

In the end, it's about a simple connection to friends. Based on the premise of teens' expectations of connectivity ("IM is not different than seeing someone in person"), easy tools count while additional features don't. The focus is on improving communication across platforms (mobile, Net, PC, Mac), and the ability to update all of your networks (Myspace, Facebook, AIM) at once. In the future, we will finally be universally connected; things don't really start happening until they're happening everywhere.

Newsletter readers: Visit Ypulse.com for the rest.

Giving Teens One Less Stress

Matt Britton from Mr. Youth gave a sponsored case study about how Neutrogena teamed with his agency to create a "fully integrated branded entertainment campaign" for the launch of a Neutrogena acne stress product. Playing on the "stress" factor, they researched what stressed teens out, and used these as touchpoints to connect with teen girls. They started by repositioning the skincare brand as a resource on stress instead of skin.

They went to spring break destinations with their "one less stress oasis," complete with massages, facials, and a set that allowed teens to get in front of a camera and chat about what stressed them out firsthand. They also reached out to college campuses with brand ambassadors, who were enlisted to film friends about the stresses in their lives. The videos were uploaded to a website, where girls were encouraged viewers to vote on the 24 most stressed girls in America.

The main purpose was to find teen costars to be in an online reality series featuring Hayden Panettiere. They filmed webisodes in a "stress free" New York loft, where the girls lived candidly (or as candid as you can possible live in such a situation). Each webisode had a theme ("dress without stress," "eat without stress") and featured a guest expert. Although they didn't release statistics as far as success rates go, the first webisode had more than 10,000 views on YouTube.

Teens and Tech: The Myths and Opportunities

Jennifer Carole from Listen2Youth/Worldwide Teen Lab's sponsored presentation included the following teen insights: Teens are relationship centric, not technology centric. They don't like technology that's hard to use, but they will do what it takes to get what they want. They don't exclusively shop at the mall - they want to shop all the time, everywhere (online, mobile, television). Following on Antti's Blyk keynote, teens want to be marketed to across all screens - not just TV, but mobile, too [when it's relevant].

The idea is to enhance the brand relationship, encourage interaction, and build relationship between online and real-life. To successfully market to teens, companies must further their relationships, find things they truly care about, and help them build their own personal brands.

Totally Wired Hip Hop: Reaching Urban Youth

The panel started off with an attempt to define hip hop, which has become a global phenomenon. Adisa Banjoko offered the old school definition of DJ-ing, break dancing, etc. while Hammer emphasized that it's less about the specific genre and more about using music as a way to reach young people from all kinds of demographic backgrounds -- he welcomes all kinds of dance on Dancejam.com!

When asked whether radio-friendly hip-hoppers like Soulja Boy are ruining rap, MC Hammer said that, like any other medium, music evolves. He scoffed at the mention of the end of hip-hop, and explained that Ice T believes Soulja Boy "killed hip hop" because his personal style of rap (Ice T's) doesn't sell as well when something as catchy as Soulja Boy is what people are buying.

One of the most interesting discussions was the prominence of profanity in music. Like any other genre of music, hip-hop is a form of musical expression. Instead of tackling the graphic content of certain rap music, we should work to improve the conditions and situations that inspire such songs.

For more coverage of this panel see: PSFK, Spinning Indie & Feministing.

Are Girls The New Geeks?

Girls want to be heard, respected and celebrated, and they will flock to websites that give this to them. It's important to let girls express themselves, but it's crucial to step in with resources, numbers for help, substantial advice, etc. It's also important to let peers be a sounding board.

Cutting and eating disorders have always been around. These problems aren't necessarily more prevalent, but girls now have the ability to use the internet to express them. It's important to understand that, when it comes to online conversations between girls, for every serious and depressing conversation, they are having positive, empowering discussions. The internet is far more enabling than disabling.

The internet can be a hostile environment so between the ages of 8-12, tweens need a safe place free of judgment and the possibility of getting attacked (especially by anonymous commenters). Registration has to be safe, because when different generations/sexes mix, problems pop up. At the same time, opinions and alternate viewpoints can teach girls to begin to develop a mental filter, taking in what they like and leaving the rest.

For more coverage of this panel, check out Feministing.

Afternoon Keynote: Damon Whiteside, Senior Vice President of Walt Disney Records, on Marketing

When most record companies are struggling with album sales, Walt Disney Records has seen a 60% rise in music sales in the past year. The really impressive aspect is that Disney's digital sales only represent 5% of their revenue; 95% comes from physical album sales which is an enormous feat. The brand's digital album sales alone are enviable, with digital tracks leaping 122%. Radio isn't exactly a thriving industry, but even Radio Disney is seeing growth and ranks as the top tween radio network among satellite stations.

As we heard throughout the Mashup, tweens and teens are going mobile. With almost half of the generation owning cell phones, more than half of those kids are using their phones to purchase mobile music and ringtones. Disney's ringtone sales are up 722%.

The recent fascination with teen pop stars might not last more than a few years, because music trends change quickly. But because tweens and teens adapt and adopt new music just as quickly, Disney's musical staying power will likely outlive the careers of some of their of-the-moment stars.

For more coverage of this panel check out this CNET story.

Unfortunately, I had to jet and missed the cyberbullying panel and the final youth entrepreneur panel....If anyone has notes or posted about either, send us the links!

Posted by anastasia