If you are relatively new to the Internet or just not very gregarious in a digital sense, then you may not have really explored YouTube. Whether or not the failure to explore YouTube should be considered a tragedy or a blessing depends on how social one is, as the experience is fundamentally that of a video-based social network but it can be used in many different ways. For example, some companies use YouTube in a strictly promotional way that allows them to reach fans and get the good word about their offering(s) out to the public. Others use YouTube to connect to fans, such as recording artists, movie stars, and many other kinds of celebrities.
In fact, some celebrities ascended to where they are today because of YouTube. One of the best examples of this might be backyard brawler turned professional cage fighter Kimbo Slice. Kimbo Slice made a big name for himself by beating up challengers in a variety of venues and posting the bouts online. The chances of any individual becoming a genuine celebrity based off self-promotion on YouTube would seem to be reasonably decent so long as they have something interesting to share.
YouTube Does HD Too!
If you have never visited YouTube, or at least not in a while, you might not be aware that the company has started offering HD video options. This can be the perfect excuse to go for the best broadband plan available as many studios offer complete episodes of their programs for free, though there may be limitations. Regardless, the ability to watch great programming for free, often in HD, makes YouTube great excuse to splurge on a faster connection. After all, HD content can only stream as fast as your connection, right?
There are plenty of other great reasons to appreciate HD features. For example, if you happen to live far away from your family as a result of work or choice then it might be nice to be able to share important events. Everything from a baby’s first steps to cousin Fred dressed up as Britney Spears and singing Karaoke at the local bar after one too many shots of tequila can be uploaded in glorious HD.
Google and Revenue
One important thing to note is that YouTube has been continually improving its HD offerings over the past few years despite the fact that Google, YouTube’s parent company, is still having problems making money off of what many industry analysts have called a poor investment. Google purchased the company in 2006 for a reported $1.65 billion in Google stock, and it is widely believed that the investment has still not been returned in its entirety to Google at this point. Google’s advertising plans for what has become its de facto video service have continued to evolve, but HD is likely to play a major role in those plans.
You Control YouTube
You can control who can see, comment on, and even rate individual videos. This degree of flexibility allows different people and/or organizations to meet their own specific needs. For example, if a well-established company wants to promote a product and does not want trolls to start piling on the negative publicity then they might disable comments. A newer company that is trying to generate hype around a new product or service might view the situation differently and encourage ratings and feedback as it can help them build a fan base.
Training seminars can be restricted to specific users, as can more personal videos such as a video message from a homesick soldier on the war front to his friends and family back home. Remember that uploading videos, SD or HD, will be faster if one has a faster upstream speed such as the wickedly fast 35 Mbps upstream speed that some lucky Verizon FiOS customers have. Most broadband services tend to offer much faster downloads than uploads, and as a result it is usually faster to watch a video than to upload it.
YouTube in Legal News: Did Viacom Upload and Sue?
One of the biggest controversies YouTube has had to contend with is that of copyright holders claiming that YouTube was giving away their products without compensation. Viacom requested a billion dollars in damage, but recent evidence suggests that Viacom hired third parties to upload a significant portion of the videos for which they were attempting to sue over. While Viacom and YouTube continue their legal wrangling, it is certainly worth noting that the Viacom lawsuit was filed in 2007, not long after Google acquired YouTube. Some speculate that Viacom may fear a Google-backed IPTV solution that is based off of YouTube. Given Google’s recent gigabit broadband announcement and the Google/gigabit fan-frenzy that ensued, that may not be an unreasonable fear. Of course, others just say that Google is a lawsuit magnet as it is worth an incredible sum of money.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is that YouTube is an extraordinary device for sharing video. There are decency standards, so ‘those kinds’ of videos cannot be shown on YouTube, but they may or may not be for the best. The future of YouTube is uncertain at this point, but it would seem likely that a continued focus on HD is almost a certainty at this point. If you have not been to YouTube, or have not been recently, give it a try. It just keeps getting better and better.
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Very interesting post. Yes, you tube is such a site where we can find everything in just a single click in videos along with the audio. Nowadays HD video quality has came, a little much more faster speed is also required to watch the video or else we have to face a lots of breaks. Sometimes when there is lots of break while watching the videos, it is not so comfortable at all too. So, speed is very vital if we talk about internet.