“We want the Oscars to be a two-screen experience,” said Laura Ziskin, who is producing this year’s broadcast. “I’m big on content, so I want to transmit as much content as possible. The web site is natural.”

Yes, DeGeneres will refer to the Web site throughout the show, and every time the broadcast goes in and out of commercial break there will be another mention.

“Research has shown that viewers of event shows, like the Oscars or the Super Bowl, watch them with their computers right there,” said Bedonna Smith, the show’s creative consultant. “We wanted to expand the experience, to leverage the themes of the show onto the small screen.”

If this year’s ratings turn out worrisome, Ziskin and her team can always supplement them with Web site hits. According to a Disney/ABC spokeswoman, the traffic the site is receiving daily is already much higher than last year.

The Oscar web site makeover comes at a time when traditional media outlets, including television and newspapers, are trying anything and everything to get a share of the YouTube audience. Oscar-related sites and blogs abound, although care must be taken when it comes to names — the Academy owns the copyright to “Oscar” and recently pulled rank on Oscarwatch.com, insisting the site, which has been around for seven years, change its name or be shut down.

Oscar.com launched about a dozen years ago as a fairly static repository of lists, times and trivia. Those who log on now can watch a series of “real people” quoting famous movie lines; shadow stylists, shoe designers and jewellers on weekly “Road to the Oscars” reports; enter a Pick the Winners Sweepstakes; or read the Gold Rush, a blog describing the nuts and bolts of production. Or choose the best celebrity companion through the game Your Perfect Oscar Date.

During the broadcast, mobile-phone users will be able to download a backstage blog and highlights from DeGeneres’ opening monologue.

Or, if the Web site should prove to be too successful, the entire show could soon be “Exclusive to Oscar.com!”

Now, if only online visitors could vote...