Flamengo fans now have a new way to communicate. Flamengo has partnered with BCyou.com, a website that allows fans to post real-time videos online via mobile phones, from the stadium or anywhere else, during the team's games and training sessions.
Match highlights, commentary, and unforgettable moments of the Flamengo nation: the fans' perspective will set the tone. Those at home can interact via cell phone or webcam, and users registered in the "Flamengo Community" on the website www.BCyou.com/Flamengo via Flamengo.com.br will have instant access to the content.
At www.BCyou.com/Flamengo, fans can comment on the game, recording game observations from their cell phones and webcams, and participate in promotions and challenges for prizes. Eduardo and Marcello Guimarães, creators of BCyou.com, explain in more detail how this new feature works:
"BCyou.com is the first social network for video communication via cell phone or webcam. Instead of text, we use videos: spoken word, connecting community members," explains Marcello. "BCyou.com users can exchange videos with each other, or upload them to public or private communities, or even to the website itself, using all the available video capture tools. "Imagine a fan filming, conveying the crowd's excitement!" Eduardo adds.
The club already has two other video-focused projects: FlaTV and the YouTube channel. Flamengo's Executive Marketing Director, Ricardo Hinrichsen, explains that there will be no conflict between the projects:
FlaTV is the Club's official television channel, where fans can access videos they can't find anywhere else. The YouTube channel serves as a way to share official Club and FlaTV videos and store the best fan-created videos in one place. BC You will be a way for fans to communicate through videos. The BC You project will also be able to support the other two projects with the large collection of fan videos we will have.
www.BCyou.com
Created by a Brazilian company, BCyou.com is the first social network for video sharing via mobile phones and webcams, following the same logic as sites that have become popular around the world, such as Orkut, Myspace, Facebook, and Hi5. The result of this combination is a "living" network, capable of sharing videos among millions of people in just a few clicks—and with the added benefit of rewarding partners with a portion of the advertising revenue generated by ads included in their communities. Soccer clubs that partner with BCyou.com will unlock a new source of revenue.
The new feature is aimed at all audiences and companies. Flamengo.com.br, Ricosurf.com.br, and FundiçãoProgresso.com.br already use the tool on their websites, but any individual or organization can join BCyou.com for free.
In tune with the market, which is witnessing the popularization of 3G cell phones and the growth of free wireless networks in public spaces such as squares, restaurants, and even beaches, BCyou.com is betting on the Brazilian market as a starting point for the birth of a large, "live" global network of users, integrating computers and cell phones.