Why YouTube isn’t the future of TV

In a few weeks I’ll be launching a YouTube channel where you’ll be able to see lots of shows readers have been asking about including Startup America and even that lost second season of NerdTV. YouTube, as the largest video streaming service anywhere, is the absolute best place for me. But YouTube isn’t the future of TV.

I know this because TV is a business and this channel I’m launching is a business and I’ve spent the last several weeks talking to investors and running the numbers every which way. I’ve spent many hours with my friend Bob Peck looking at the economics of YouTube and my unequivocal conclusion is that while YouTube is great, it […]

By |June 28th, 2012|2012, Advertising, Internet, Television|Comments Off on Why YouTube isn’t the future of TV
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No Joy in YouTubeville

Some of YouTube’s more popular producers of original videos are quietly reporting their viewership numbers have suddenly dropped. The problem isn’t that viewer habits are changing. We’re still in love with cute kittens and people in pain. The problem is click fraud and online video producers are finally getting busted for it.

I was told last week that least some of the numbers generated by more than a few YouTube video makers who deliver hundreds of thousands of views on a regular basis come from banks of servers and zombie PCs pretending to surf. Such click fraud was a huge issue a few years ago for the Google search engine, but YouTube has separate management, remember, […]

By |February 15th, 2012|2012|49 Comments
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All My Children a killer app?

This may seem an odd topic, but stick with me. Yesterday Disney’s ABC television network said it was licensing two canceled daytime TV soap operas to a production company that would be moving the shows to the Internet. I seem to be the only one who thinks this is a brilliant move. In fact it might be the Internet’s next killer app.

All My Children and One Life to Live as killer apps? Yes.

A killer app, remember, is the Silicon Valley term for an application that all by itself justifies to certain users the acquisition of hardware needed to run that app. People will go down to the store and buy hardware just to be able to use that application, whatever it is. […]

By |July 8th, 2011|2011|61 Comments
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Hollywood's impending Internet revolution

New York Magazine wrote recently that YouTube was planning to throw large sums of money at celebrities who would then make short form (three minute) videos for the site. The numbers mentioned were staggering (up to $5 million per celebrity channel) but the business model is crazy. It’s the three minute thing that makes no sense. I’m sure if YouTube is planning something like this it is specifically for videos that are not three minutes long.
Youtube already owns the Internet market for three minute videos. While there are probably instances where YouTube might throw some significant money into getting the odd celebrity to do something in this space, it is traditional TV-length videos and movies where Youtube actually needs help.
Looking at total video […]

By |March 15th, 2011|2011|55 Comments
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The Global Village

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This week more than 20 million people watched on YouTube and other video sharing sites a single performance from the ITV show Britain’s Got Talent in which a frumpy spinster from Scotland sang like an angel.You can see her astonishing performance here.

It’s not the singing that makes me write this, though the singing was good.I lived as a boy in the north of England and knew ladies like this Susan Boyle.What makes me write about it is the effect she and her singing had on the Internet and the Internet in turn had on the performance and its aftermath.

The video file as presented on YouTube is just over seven minutes […]

By |April 16th, 2009|Uncategorized|160 Comments
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