Before ManiaTV.com first launched, founding CEO Drew Massey bought a 1960s school bus from a junkyard to hold the online music channel's production equipment.Three years later, ManiaTV is charging ahead with former Chief Operating Officer Peter Hoskins promoted to the driver's seat of the online entertainment company. The Denver-based company is adding a studio in Los Angeles and is working to sign more Hollywood celebrities for shows. A new Web site design launches this fall, and user-generated video is taking a back seat to original programming, favored by advertisers who have their products wrapped in to ManiaTV programs.

The changes roared ahead after Massey gave up his office in June for the titles of chairman and "chief maniac," or evangelist for the company. Hoskins, 41, became chief executive officer.



Massey had launched ManiaTV with backing of $5 million and presided when it signed an agreement with former MTV late-night show host Tom Green to do a live show from his Hollywood Hills living room. His reign also launched an initiative to host viewers' own channels, with user-generated content.

Green and ManiaTV have since amicably parted ways, with ManiaTV having access to Green's 186 episodes (he was signed to do 50) for a year.

User-generated videos are taking a back seat.

"Hype doesn't equal profitability with user-generated content," Hoskins said. "It's very difficult to walk a balance between saying we're a premium network with premium content and at the same time having some guy doing bad karaoke in his underwear."

"We are absolutely standing behind what is succeeding, which is premium content."

Massey said he supported the decision.

"I'm excited that we're focusing the company on original content again. That has always been the core of our business and our focus from the first day we turned on the network on Labor Day 2004," said Massey, who remains the largest shareholder at privately held ManiaTV.

He said user-generated content was meant to be like a farm team of producers for ManiaTV, but technological issues kept it from succeeding.

An existing show hosted by former Red Hot Chili Peppers and Jane's Addiction guitarist Dave Navarro will move from the Dragonfly nightclub to the new studio being launched in Los Angeles, and Hoskins said his team is recruiting more Hollywood talent.

About a dozen people in Denver have been laid off, partly due to the shift away from user-generated video, but Hoskins said more people will be hired in Los Angeles, keeping total employment around 70.

Hoskins was chief operating officer for Resort Technology Partners, a software and Web solutions firm, when Massey lured him to the same role at ManiaTV shortly after it launched.

Hoskins wouldn't disclose ManiaTV's revenue but said the site now is averaging 10 million visits a month and 4 million unique visitors.

He said his biggest goals now are creating compelling entertainment and better advertising opportunities for advertisers.

"If we do those two things, we win," Hoskins said.

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On the Net:

ManiaTV: http://www.maniatv.com