Today, we're at the halfway mark of our tour of Digital Coast companies succeeding in a tough market. In Burbank, we find Whitespeed, a marketing firm that has developed technology that simulates streaming video so it can be viewed by dial-up Internet users.

by Karen Thompson

Online marketing company Whitespeed is less than a year old. It employs only five people. You'd be unlikely to guess either fact, though, given the impressive client roster it has amassed in just eight months, including NBC, MTV, General Motors and American Express.

With technology that is designed to resemble streaming video without the requirement of a broadband connection for viewing, Whitespeed creates 15 to 20 second advertising clips and, using Macromedia Flash, delivers them to consumers.

The pieces, which include audio components, are made to catch people's attention--and they have done exactly that. General Motors was Whitespeed's first client, and the company is currently working on advertising clips for NBC's September Sweeps Week.