Today marks the premiere of Gemini Division, a sci-fi web-only series starring indie-flick hottie, Rosario Dawson (Sin City, Clerks II).
This bold move by NBC Universal could very well change the face of original programming as we know it. A recent Advertising Age article claims that this is "perhaps the most significant original programming ever developed by a broadcast network specifically for the web."
According to industry rags, "Gemini" will roll out as a 50-webisode series, with the first two segments premiering today on NBC.com, SciFi.com, and GeminiDivision.com, and will be featured on several video-on-demand platforms including Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Verizon FiOS, Dish Network, Amazon Unbox, and Microsoft's Xbox Live and Zune. Wow, that's an exhaustive list of partners, not to mention a number of top advertisers who have signed up, including Microsoft, Intel, and UPS.
It'll be interesting to see how this is received by the people who matter the most - the online audience and regular TV viewers. Supposedly, if viewers respond favorably to a given story line or character, the network will also be prepared to shoot ancillary footage and create social media spin-offs. They've apparently already released a series of blogs which you won't know until episode 30 are actually related to the show. Regardless, I for one intend on keeping close tabs on this endeavor, if not for anything else but to get up-close and personal with senorita Rosario.
