South by Southwest (SXSW) is always a crazy week, packed with lots of informative talks as well as many fun parties.  I’ve decided to recap the week with five highlights from the many panels I attended at SXSW 2010.

1. Words Are Cheaper Than Comps
   In the panel, “Content Strategy For You,” Margot Bloomstein did a good job showing that it’s best to revise content early on in a project -- before the design phase.  If you make content changes in the design stage, than you are probably going to be forced to revise your comps, and that can be very time consuming and costly for the client.  It’s better to make these changes early in the process when you are laying the foundation for your project.
2. When it comes to Pay TV vs. the Internet, I’m with Mark Cuban
   Going into this The Battle for Your TV,  I sided with the Internet and more specifically, with Avner Ronen of Boxee.  Boxee's free software allows you to easily watch videos, TV shows, and movies streamed from the internet onto your television.  The Boxee software is well designed and user friendly.  But as Mark Cuban pointed out,  their software is free -- so how will they make money when their venture capital runs out?  The more thought-provoking point that Cuban made was that on sites like YouTube where there are millions of different options, how does a single video stand out?  Unlimited choices are expensive to market.  There’s also the technical side of things.  It’s one thing when thousands of people stream last week’s episode of "The Office," but the internet can’t support millions of people streaming a live broadcast of Monday Night Football.  The infrastructure isn’t there and won’t be for the foreseeable future.
3. Everybody screws up
   Probably my favorite panel was on a simple topic that is relevant to all businesses. A group of seasoned professionals in the interactive world discussed how they had screwed up projects, what they learned from these mistakes, and how to avoid them going forward.  Obviously everyone makes mistakes, but industry leaders tend to be put on a pedestal and thought of as being flawless in everything they do.   It was refreshing to not only hear them admit they make mistakes, but give detailed examples as well.  More often than not the panelists had made the same mistakes as I had in the past.  The important thing is to learn from what you’ve done wrong and move forward so you can become better partners with clients going forward.
4. Video is quickly becoming a first class citizen on the web
   In the past, the majority of videos on the web have been served to viewers through Flash.  With HTML5 becoming a reality though, Flash is being shown the door, resulting in videos becoming directly embedded into the page via the "video" element.  Video sites like YouTube and Vimeo are already starting to push HTML5 video to consumers.  More importantly though, with the iPhone and iPad restricting the use of Flash, HTML5 is being pushed into use quicker than anyone would have anticipated a few years ago.
5. DSLR Filmmaking
   I know DSLR filmmaking sounds like an oxymoron, but this quickly emerging format is producing some amazing results.  Cheap tools that allow anyone to create films have been touted for years.  The current generation of DSLR cameras is the first time I actually believe the hype.  Filmmakers with small budgets can now create visuals that rival major Hollywood films.  That’s not to say that DSLR camera’s don’t have drawbacks, but with right technical knowledge and creative vision, the results can be stunning.