The YouTube Revolution

The height of the Napster revolution took place around 2001, and it happened because more and more people were moving to faster connections. Downloading a song on dialup could take many minutes, or even a few hours. But with broadband internet, it could be done in a matter of seconds.

As more and more people obtained a faster connection, it became possible to share not just audio over the internet, but video as well.

YouTube launched in 2005. YouTube allowed people to upload video, and watch right in their browser. YouTube experienced explosive growth, and in just a little over a year, the founders sold YouTube to Google for 1.65 billion dollars.

Some videos that are uploaded are just funny videos taken by people. For example, watch this movie of a boy who just came out of the dentist and is still a little discombobulated.


However, YouTube is more than just home movies. Just like Napster, people found that they could generate good content, and then reap benefits in other ways. Musicians gave away music videos. Comedians gave away their stand-up comedy, and up-and-coming writers and movie makers everywhere started to post content in hopes of making a name for themselves.

For example, comedian Felica Day wrote and helped create a show called The Guild. The Guild was about a group of friends who played World of Warcraft. The show became incredibly popular, with millions of downloads and over 150,000 subscribers. Why would these group of actors and writers donate their time to make this show?

Felicia Day, the show’s star, has gone on to appear in other television and movie productions. The guild has generated money for it's producers who sell songs, ads, and merchandise.

Google started displaying ads on YouTube videos that has further allowed users to generate money. Now, users who create a popular video can make money by displaying ads on their videos.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_guild
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txqiwrbYGrs