It’s a done deal. Kazaa has agreed to shell out $115 million to the record industry to pay for its sins of the past. And not only that, version 3 of their once popular software has been released, but now works just like its predecessor Napster where users have to pay for what they download. This is just another nail on the coffins of Limewire and eDonkey who are up next for a dirty round of settlements.
I was reading about YouTube and how its future is looking pretty dim nowadays. Although a great service no doubt, its business model simply lacked foresight. Its reliance on its users to share copyrighted videos is a lawsuit just waiting to happen. I wouldn’t be surprised to see major TV networks throwing their weight around them soon. Case in point: NBC. It’s flailing in the ratings. Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien aren’t batting an eyelash in letting that little fact known. But to watch both on YouTube doing their skits is the last thing NBC wants right now. There are around 400 videos of Leno and O’Brien currently uploaded at YouTube. Expect to see those disappearing soon, like NBC did for SNL.
Although its most popular videos are original, the best filmmakers who rely on such video-sharing hubs tend to go somewhere else where they can make real money, such as Revver.com or Blip.tv where revenues from advertising are evenly split. Some videos from Revver unfortunately have made their way into YouTube, angering their makers coz they get zilch. YouTube usually complies with requests for takedowns, but soon after the same videos are reuploaded. Basically it is dealing with a monster — its ignorant drove of users who have no clue what they’re doing. With revenues barely coming in and costs of running the site sitting at $1 million per month alone, YouTube is about to die.
Personally, Revver is the best place to find original videos and you might want to check out Grouper too. No clutter on both, just clean fun stuff.
I’m with you on Revver.com. Youtube is filld with too much crap.