Is YouTube a viable medium?

Résumé du document

In February 2005, YouTube was created by Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, two young PayPal employees who were trying to figure out a good solution to share video clips with their friends. Since then, YouTube has become the leading video-sharing website. Google bought the enterprise for $1.65 billion in October 2006. At that time, YouTube was still unprofitable, and many commentators pointed out that this acquisition, especially at such a high price, was a big mistake. Today, the future of YouTube still seems uncertain in the volatile Web 2.0 environment, but it is brighter than what it was one year ago: "YouTube could be a new NBC, or another Napster," Heather Green wrote in BusinessWeek.

Extraits

[...] YouTube needs to build long-lasting partnerships. The problem is that traditional media are often hostile toward YouTube. Some of them see it as a threat, since it questions their dominance; in the United Kingdom, YouTube is becoming the number one entertainment website, ahead of BBC.co.uk. The issue of copyright infringement is also sensitive; big media such as Viacom, NBC Universal, and Time Warner are spending millions on anti-piracy monitors to track down illegal content on YouTube. When Google purchased the upstart, it immediately created a $500 million defense fund. [...]

[...] The major role of YouTube will certainly be demonstrated during the 2008 election campaign. Many observers think that it can influence the result of the election, especially among voters under 35. Ex-Senator of Virginia George Allen has probably lost the 2006 election because of a YouTube video, showing the politician making racially insensitive comments about his Democratic challenger James Webb. In May 2007, the presidential campaign started on YouTube with the “YouChoose '08 campaign,” that is a CNN debate in which US presidential candidates fielded questions submitted by YouTube posters. [...]

[...] Is YouTube A Viable Medium? In February 2005, YouTube was created by Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, two young PayPal employees who were trying to figure out a good solution to share video clips with their friends. Since then, YouTube has become the leading video-sharing website, and Google bought the upstart for $ 1.65 billion in October 2006. At the time, YouTube was still unprofitable, and many commentators pointed out that this acquisition, especially at such a high price, was a big mistake. [...]

[...] They did quite a good job so far, since they convinced some traditional media of the benefits that such an exposure provides. CBS and Comcast agree that TV clips on YouTube bring additional viewers to the full-length shows. For instance, a clip of a David Letterman interview with Paris Hilton on YouTube attracted 4.4 million viewers. Furthermore, CNN political editor Sam Feist emphasizes that traditional media and user-generated content have different roles: don't watch YouTube for the news.” The big media cannot miss this opportunity to expand their businesses, especially as they are becoming dependent on open source video. [...]