Online Brogan Launches HowToOpenThings

CHICAGO, APRIL 2007 – HowToOpenThings, a Web site where people win cash prizes from video contests created by fellow Internet users, launched today.

"HowToOpenThings (http://www.howtoopenthings.com) is best described as a mashup of eBay and YouTube," said Rien Heald, co-founder of Online Brogan, the parent organization of HowToOpenThings.

People come to HowToOpenThings to create contests and view videos that illustrate how to open things. Contests can range from the mundane: "how to open a broken window", to the amusing: "how to open a stall door in a public bathroom for a stranger of the opposite sex", to the bizarre: "how to open a funeral ceremony with a joke."

"Our members control the contest details, including the number of judges, amount of prize money, length of the contest, and prize winner," Heald explained about the site. "Anyone can create a contest, join any already existing contest as a judge, or submit videos to try to win a contest as long as they are within the allocated parameters set by the site’s members."

HowToOpenThings can host thousands of contests at once with unlimited prize money up for grabs. The site provides entertainment, information, and a way for video producers to get paid directly for their creativity.

"We’re excited to see what the community will create for these contests and the informative and undoubtedly humorous videos these contests will spur," said Heald.

While HowToOpenThings presents videos to site visitors, it is not in competition with Google or YouTube or other video hosting sites. HowToOpenThings is complementary to these sites but uses its own special sauce, the Collaborative Auction™, a patent pending platform developed by Online Brogan that enables the unique contests. More information about the Collaborative Auction™ including licensing terms is available by contacting sales@howtoopenthings.com.

Media Contact:
Rien Heald
Co-founder, Online Brogan
630.337.7822
rien.heald@howtoopenthings.com