This post by Dan Ackerman Greenberg on TechCrunch has riled up quite a few people who object to the spammy, underhand methods he suggests for making your video truly viral. So much so that Dan contributed a follow-up post. Dan is talking about using viral videos for advertising (and a lot of this stuff does sound very sneaky indeed!) but there are some important lessons here for filmmakers too. If nothing else it’s a good wake up call about what’s happening on the web as advertisers try to reach consumers in new, obtuse ways. As a filmmaker it is good to be aware of things like the power of tags and the importance of tracking but don’t spam people. It’s annoying, often illegal, and it’s going to create ill-will. Use the tools but keep it honest and make sure your distribution strategies match the integrity of your film.