Verizon Wireless enrolls at Valemont U - BusinessWeek

MTV viewers who tuned into the season openers of The Hills and The City on Sept. 29 got an unexpected glimpse of another series making its debut that night. Before The Hills got under way and just after The City ended an hour later—during what would ordinarily be a commercial break—Viacom's (VIA) MTV snuck in the first episode of Valemont, a teen murder mystery set on the campus of a prestigious university of the same name, sponsored by Verizon Wireless.

What's unique about Valemont is that it's destined not for TV, but the Web. Producers will air a small number of episodes on TV but continue the series online. In the past, most Web series have remained confined to the Web, often to support TV programming. But in a turnabout for scripted online series, Valemont is getting prime-time billing on a popular TV show before attempting to gain traction online. "We want to use on-air to promote the Web," not the other way around, says Valemont creator Brent Friedman, who's also the brains behind such other Web series as Afterworld and Gemini Division...