hawt and steamy tumblelog action, starring Not worthy in the eyes of IMDB?
David Nett gives a good summary of the subjective/discriminatory process of getting a web series approved for inclusion on IMDB. He speaks from personal experience, and he has a lot of valid points:
IMDB inclusion is not, and should not be, a popularity contest - the number of viewers should be irrelevant to the legitimacy of a project. (IMDB has not publicly released the actual viewership threshold they require for web series.)
It seems pretty clear to me that IMDB has no immediate interest in including web shows in their database, and what little they’re doing now is the bare minimum to satisfy a handful of high-profile new media properties/talent.
IMDB wants to keep their database full of quality entries, totally understandable, but they are literally years behind the industry. They don’t even have a Web/New Media category. Ask A Ninja is listed as a TV series. Tsk tsk.
It’s no secret the times are changing in Hollywood and the IMDB website is suspiciously not. There’s a huge amount of video content being produced right now that IMDB isn’t tracking. They’re at a crossroads. Time to make a decision, guys - do you want to track web shows or not?
If so, carve out a place on your website for new media coverage, hire or partner with people who understand the emerging industry, and loosen up your “guidelines” so that professionally-produced web shows have a reasonable chance of breaking into the walled garden.
The bottom line - when a service becomes the definitive source of information (i.e. gatekeeper) for an industry, as IMDB has become for entertainment, they have a responsibility to the people working in that industry.
