YouTubeLive

I will be the first to admit, that in the past few weeks, I have began getting a little bored with YouTube. I have my certain 'keywords' that I like to search, and I'm assuming, like other people, they are oftentimes related to current happenings. But once those events are not so happening anymore, the demand for videos subsides.

One example would be videos depicting key players in the Presidential election. Prior to November 4th you could find new videos about John McCain, Barack Obama and Sarah Palin (sorry Joe Biden) almost hourly. Now, they are few and far between.

Although usage on YouTube is still above and beyond that of almost every other website online, numbers have gone down. As a way to bring something new to it's viewers, YouTube is holding an event, open to anyone, on November 22nd, called YouTubeLive.

(info. from New York Times.com)

The event has a variety of guests/performers for viewers to enjoy. Singer Katy Perry, who has her own personal YouTube channel will perform. As well as the two hosts of Mythbusters, and other people who have become celebrities in their own right because of the growing popularity of their YouTube videos.

The website advertising this upcoming event, is immaculate in and of itself. There is SO much to look at like a countdown that gets down to the seconds until the premiere. As well as a list of featured performers. And advertisements for contests, such as "Name that Virgin Atlantic Airplane".

There are also other media facets available, such as a link to RSVP your attendance on Facebook, or add the event date to your YouTube account. Convergence perhaps?

Tony Hawk, you're my hero.

The more I explore YouTube, the more I see how simplistically complicated it really is. I could be totally off on this idea, but I sort of feel YouTube to be a combination of convergence, collective intelligence, and transmedia storytelling. Now, let me explain....

As stated by our text, Convergence Culture, each of these terms, individually, can be defined as:

• Convergence: The flow of content across multiple media platforms, and, the cooperation between multiple media industries.


• Collective Intelligence: The ability of virtual communities to leverage the knowledge and expertise of their members.


• Transmedia Storytelling: Stories that unfold across multiple media platforms, with each medium making distinctive contributions to our understanding of the world, a more integrated approach to franchise.

Now, I'll keep explaining...

After viewing this Guitar Hero World Tour commercial, I hope that several different mediums were apparent to you.

This is a commercial, which is a parody of a famous movie advertising a video game based on music starring professional athletes, on the Internet.

Now, I would hope that the convergence is rather apparent. There are six different mediums represented in a 30 second commercial. I think that collective intelligence is not too hidden either. Although a majority of the mediums were all professionally created, their placement on YouTube was not, and can easily be sought out by anyone who wishes to view it.

Finally, transmedia storytelling, slightly less self-explanatory. Although the merging of all six mediums does not come together to display an overall message, some extra knowledge is required.

Take for instance, if you are not very familiar with professional athletes. In this particular commercial, Alex Rodriguez (baseball), Tony Hawk (skateboarding), Kobe Bryant (basketball) and Michael Phelps (swimming), are featured. And each male athlete is wearing a piece of clothing that represents their particular sport. The first time that I saw this commercial I did not recognize Tony Hawk, therefore was very confused as to why one guy was wearing a helmet. I still enjoyed the commercial prior to learning who he was, however it made much more sense once I could identify with each character.

Other instances where this may be helpful? Younger generations (which presumably, this commercial is targeted for) are less likely to recognize this infamous scene from the film Risky Business which was originally performed by Tom Cruise. Again, the advertisement will still be enjoyable because it combines famous athletes with a popular video game, however, the entire effect will not be felt.

YouTube: The Adolescent Years

Executives for YouTube are discovering the lack of validity their website bestows upon viewers. With sites such as Hulu are attempting to overshadow YouTube, by making it appear young, juvenile, and under experienced.

Initially, when you visit the Hulu homepage, you are instantly greeted with a well-organized, visually-appealing array of options. Although the actual amount of video options Hulu offers is embarrassing compared to the millions + YouTube posses, Hulu's quality vastly outshines YouTube's quantity. Hulu also offers full length episodes and movies as opposed to the short clips found on YouTube. And, most importantly, all videos found on Hulu are posted by the actual creators, therefore no copyright infringements can be addressed.

BUT, and that's a big but...

I'm not turning my back on YouTube just yet. In hopes of becoming more credible, YouTube is in the process of 'growing up'. They have a long ways to go, but the intentions and prospects are good...

YouTube is gradually pulling themselves from their initial grassroots approach to media, in hopes of broadening their prospective (professional) users. Although YouTube does not intend to completely uproot, they are still inviting users to post their fan videos, spoofs, and musical tributes, they are trying to deflect illegal postings (such as videos without permission).

Some ways in which YouTube is 'growing up' you might ask?

An article in the New York Times (online) addresses the sites initial baby steps...

They (YouTube) have established a VideoID system, which makes it easy to recognize whether or not the video in question was legally placed on the website, or not. If the video does not have the VideoID, the corporation who owns the rights to the video has two options. First, they can pull the video from YouTube. Or, second, they can add advertisement to the video.

In a much larger stride towards Internet maturity, YouTube has paired up with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). This partnership allows YouTube the rights to certain full length feature films, as well as complete episodes of television shows.

MGM currently has complete control over which shows and films will be featured on YouTube, and currently it is a very small selection, which hopefully will grow, as popularity increases. Production companies are hoping that a partnership with YouTube will help to diminish the 'pirating' of films and television shows.

Hopefully, this will help YouTube to keep up and be a valid competitor with Hulu currently and in the future.