22nd
JerichoPalooza Explained
Hi, this is James Siminoff, owner and creator of Jerichopalooza.com. I feel the need to clear the air on certain issues and misconceptions regarding the leaked site.
- First and foremost, I am fan of the show. In fact, if you have any contact with Jeffrey Braverman, please ask him to look up my name as I donated peanuts at the end of season one. Secondly, I am a serial entrepreneur. When rumors began of the cancellation of Jericho for a second time, it sparked a business model that asked the question, “Why wouldn’t networks and studios create a donor-based program to keep their shows in production?” In exploring this idea further, my team and I put together a concept of how this program might work.
- Our original intention was to have the right partners and contracts in place with respect to Jericho, which we had hoped would be no longer than three to six weeks from today. Now that the information has been leaked, we’ve been forced to change our business model on the fly. We have decided to do a “soft launch” in order to get pledges that will serve as a further tact in bringing the show back in some form. Additionally, we are going to continue to work on our business model, as it was conceived, to hopefully roll out in the near future. To be specific, in rolling out this business venture we started by gathering investors and broad, influential partners in the Hollywood community. This has been accomplished. Our next step was to utilize our partners and investors to assist us in finalizing a deal with the right parties so that we could launch this site properly. Again, that business model would be with the right deals and contracts in place and act as a pre-sell for the next season of Jericho. This would truly be a show for the fans by the fans.
- This leaked mock site was part of a presentation we used to illustrate the functionality and usability of potential business ideas to key investors and perspective partners. It’s still unclear how this information leaked, but we are obviously frustrated that it has served to mislead the Jericho fan base. With all the other companies I have launched, there was no need to password protect the website, because bluntly, they weren’t that interesting. This was simply a mere element of the pitch and a slight oversight on our part.
- While we can’t comment on the nature of talks with investors and agencies at this point, we want to let it be known that official talks have NOT happened with CBS/Jericho/Junction as of yet. Unfortunately, when the site was leaked, that bit of wishful thinking was misconstrued. Again, whoever leaked the demo website simply had their information wrong or wanted to manipulate the facts.
- The only way we could have ever taken monetary pledges would be if the proper deals and contracts were in place. Without a fully-realized business model, and without CBS agreeing to terms or the cooperation of the Jericho production team, collecting money would be impossible, not to mention a complete waste of time. We can’t raise money for something we don’t own the rights to. It’s as simple as that.
- We can confirm that there ARE highly influential parties wanting to gauge the interest and levels of participation in this venture. We can guarantee that through your non-binding pledges and show of support (via e-mail and message boards), your voice WILL help us bring this venture to fruition.
- Just to expand upon the “pledge” concept, it acts as a simple statement that you, as the viewer, would pay X amount of dollars for a completed season three of Jericho should it be brought into production.
This idea will work. We have the proper avenues and investors secured with support from many influential players within the entertainment industry. To alleviate some of your concerns, I have surrounded myself by a team of experts with very strong alliances within the Hollywood community. If we can show that Jericho fans will pay for season three of their show, my team will help make Jericho Season three a reality.
So come Monday, please show your support by pledging at jerichopalooza.com. We encourage everyone to e-mail us with any feedback. As a united front, we can bring Jericho back to life and give the power back to the viewer.
Thank you for all of your questions and feedback up until this point. I look forward to hearing from you soon.
Sincerely,
James Siminoff
