MTV Networks will track second-by-second viewing of Web commercials and videos, and link viewer online communities built around its TV programs, the network’s digital chief said in an interview focused on the company’s new advertising strategy.

Viacom Inc’s 26-year old cable TV network is striving to remain relevant in a digital age by learning more about fans of some of its top shows like “The Hills” or “Real World” through the shows’ websites, said Mika Salmi, MTV president of global digital media in an interview with Reuters.

MTV will provide advertiser partners second-by-second data on how the videos and ads on its site are watched by users online. On Monday, MTV said it had signed an agreement with Visible Measures, an independent third-party measurement firm to provide the data.

“We want the advertisers to know exactly what’s happening on our websites and how big we really are in online video, said Salmi. “Internally, we want to understand user behavior so we can tweak the videos to give a better experience,” he added.

The move mirrors a similar push for second-by-second data by the TV industry’s audience measurement sector led by Nielsen and TiVo Inc.

The new service will also be able to measure video usage of MTV-owned videos that have been shared or embedded on other social networks like News Corp’s MySpace or blogs.

In the last few years MTV has been working on transforming itself for the 21st Century by building or buying a collection of digital brands across music, programming, virtual worlds and gaming. Salmi’s company Atom Films, was bought in 2006.

The cable TV network is striving to remain relevant as more of its core audience of 12-to-34-year-olds spend an increasing amount of their time surfing the Web than they do watching TV.

Bernstein Research said advertising on MTV-branded networks grew slower than the overall cable industry from 2004 to 2007.

COMMUNITY WORK

MTV is building communities across its hundreds of websites like VH-1, Pimp My Ride and Jackass through a service called Flux. Once a user is logged on the Flux network they can move on to other MTV sites without having to log in again.

Like other popular social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace, users on MTV’s Flux, built with Social Project, can share videos, personal photos and blogs. MTV bought social networking company Social Project earlier this month for an undisclosed sum.

But it remains to be seen whether social networking in itself can make money from advertising in the long term. MTV is betting its long running relationships with advertisers on cable television and the popularity of its shows will put it in a unique position to develop in-depth relationships with fans across its hundreds of websites.

“If we wanted to have any kind of ‘network effect’ or cross-traffic sharing, the sites have to connect together so we had to get them on similar platforms,” said Salmi.

The so called ‘network effect’ could help users discover more programming by seeing what other community friends have watched on MTV’s various sites thereby driving more advertising traffic.

Salmi said since members of social networks on its websites have provided basic personal data, that will help advertising partners more easily track users anonymously and target appropriate advertising campaigns at such users

Amy Winehouse and Britney Spears lead the nominations for best act at this year’s MTV Europe Music Awards, it has been announced.

Spears - who is set to release her comeback album Circus in November - has been shortlisted for two MTV Europe Music Awards, including Album of the Year for Blackout and Act of 2008.

Troubled singer Winehouse has also been nominated for Act of 2008, alongside Rihanna, Coldplay, Britney Spears and Leona Lewis.

Other nominees include Kanye West and Beyonce Knowles for Best Urban, and Metallica and Linkin’ Park for the Rock Out award.

Beyonce is set to perform at the November 6 ceremony in Liverpool, England, to launch her new album.

The R’n'B star - who is married to rapper Jay-Z - is also up for the
Ultimate Urban prize.

Katy Perry’s I Kissed A Girl has made it into the Most Addictive Track list, alongside Kid Rock’s All Summer Long and Pink’s So What.

Britney Spears said she plans to make her first international tour since 2004 to support her highly anticipated new album, “Circus.”

In an interview broadcast on Monday by New York radio station Z100, Spears was asked if she planned to tour.

“Oh definitely, next year,” she said, adding the tour would probably take her “around the world.”

That would mark her first major concert tour since 2004.

Last year, Spears performed in a handful of club shows in Southern California under the name the M+M’s but did not go on the road to promote her last album, “Blackout,” which had a good chart debut in November 2007 but faded quickly.

After more than a year of making headlines for shaving her head, attacking paparazzi with an umbrella and two admissions to psychiatric hospital units, Spears, 26, is preparing for a comeback.

Her last live public performance was a much-ridiculed rendition of “Gimme More” at the MTV Video Music Awards a year ago.

The singer’s latest single, “Womanizer,” was released on Friday and is the first single off “Circus,” which will be released on December 2 — her 27th birthday. She told Z100 she spent six months working on the album

Country music singer Dolly Parton has lived up to her legendary status after her stage adaptation of hit movie 9 To 5 received rave reviews.

The show opened at Los Angeles’ Ahmanson Theatre on Saturday (20Sep08) and went without a hitch after a shaky preview the week before.

Parton was forced to take the stage during the earlier show, singing her classic track I Will Always Love You after a technical glitch caused the musical to grind to a halt.

But critics have praised the icon’s efforts, echoing the audience at the musical’s preview - who were wowed by her relentless attempt to save the show.

A critic from The Hollywood Reporter writes: “The film always was a musical waiting to happen, and Parton has made the most of the opportunity. Her songwriting skills along with her desire to dazzle in whatever she does were made for Broadway…

“Parton (and her collaborators) have done a sensational job.”

9 to 5: The Musical will follow on its run in L.A. at New York’s Marquis Theater next spring

BRITNEY SPEARS is back to work on the set of her music video for her comeback song WOMANIZER - as a waitress.
The singer was photographed wearing a black wig and red lipstick while filming on Wednesday (24Sep08) at a lounge in downtown Los Angeles.
She was accompanied by a troupe of dancers, who arrived at the shoot dressed in waiter uniforms including white dress shirts, skinny ties, and black pants or leggings.
The video is being directed by Joseph Kahn, who also helmed Spears’ Toxic and Stronger promos.
Womanizer is the first single from Spears’ upcoming album, Circus. It is expected for release at the end of the month (Sep08).