Megapixel Man of the Year

A brilliant marketing move or a bizarre waste of time? One manufacturer is sponsoring the 'Megapixel Man of the Year [link no longer available]' award, causing a small commotion this week. The award's on-line voting allows the community to select between two finalists, salesmen at Arecont and IQinVision.

The award is billed as "the most sought after prize in all of IP Surveillance," emphasizing that "The road is long and journey treacherous but for the chosen it is a chance to breathe the rarefied air of the highest resolution."

This video explains 'why it is so important':

Obviously, it is a gag. And some have argued that it is a stupid one at that but we think it's kind of brilliant.

The 'promoter' of the 'award' is Vunetrix, a company that offers real time network monitoring for video surveillance systems, an offering so niche and technical it is hard to get any press (though see our general review of their offering and recent cloud addition).

This gag, at least, gets people thinking and talking about their company before the show, far more than if they put out a marketing brochure or sale pitch. Plus, because it features sales people at two IP camera manufacturers, it can leverage their networks.

Not everyone is pleased. The HD SDI Alliance condemned these award, alleging "Vunetrix to have drank even more IP camera kool-aid than IPVM, ignoring the fastest growing market in the history of capitalism."

Despite this, we think it is a clever move that shows there is more to getting publicity than stale press releases or canned contributors. However, with the recent Domewizard girls controversy, we hope Vunetrix offers a 'WDR Woman of the Year" recognizing those ladies who can deliver in tough conditions.