It’s pretty obvious that Google is getting ready to fully cast its social net over its web properties. It’s been doing things like tweaking the developer’s side of iGoogle to be much more social, separating your contacts from Gmail to be used for all of Google, and overhauling and promoting Google Profiles. The latest move is a subtle one, but it’s important for Google’s social graph: Pairing YouTube accounts with Google accounts.
To be clear, you could previously link the two together, but starting today, if you sign up for a new YouTube account, you automatically get a Google account to go with it. And more importantly, buried at the end of the post on the YouTube blog, Google notes that, “some of the new features we roll out down the road may require a Google Account. In these cases, we’ll be there to help you link your YouTube Account to a Google Account if you want to check the features out.” Without saying what it means by that specifically, I think it’s pretty clear that Google has big plans for its hugely popular online video site in its overall social scheme.
Not only does that probably mean little things like being able to feature YouTube videos on your Google Profile (just like you can with pictures now), but also placing videos in the upcoming “Updates” news stream area. That’s seems likely to be the name of the area that will be Google’s version of the News Feed — where all of your social data and the data of your contacts is collected in one place. This area, which has yet to be unveiled, is very important if Google is to find cohesion in its social plans which have so far been scattered.
For the big two social networks, Facebook and MySpace, pictures have been a huge part of each of their networks. Videos are now increasingly becoming a big part as well as recording and encoding technologies improve — and broadband speeds get better. And there’s no bigger site for video than YouTube, which in the U.S. far outpaces its next closest competitor, Fox Interactive Media, which runs, yes, MySpace. So Google is set on the video end for its social network that is coming together.
Its exciting to watch google going social day after day.
virtuall acquire Youtube on http://webmilke...com/youtubecom/
I got pushed out of Google Groups by jerks hitting 1 star all the time in a usenet radio group…would the communist kindergarten come to purge me eventually?
By the way, GOOGLE SYNDICATES THIS, correct?
should be!!!
booz helps me get down the stairs with style
http://www.epic.../load/8-1-0-309
beijing
Gesundheit
good
Does YOUR chewing gum lose it’s flavor on the bedpost overnight?
Might make the sign up process a little easier the interminable captcha thing on google id is rubbish
Why does Youtube not have Viddler style commenting? I know 2 things:
1. You are absolutely right that Youtube and social networking are going to merge. It is like the video phones in the ‘future’ movies of the past but better.
2. Like Gary V says, everything from Youtube to Hulu is replacing TV.
Given that, I think commenting easier or allowing some sort of in-video discussion will become very important. It’s like what Current TV & Twitter did with the presidential debates: people will discuss as they watch. That’s why TV is going to the internet. That’s why sites like Youtube will win. And that’s why I hope Youtube does something better with their commenting.
Or maybe they have something and people don’t about it (which in my book is just as dangerous as not having it)
Most folks come to watch and say nice video.
Do you really need more?
Hi fun, good point. You don’t, but when that comment is shown on the video instead of somewhere below the fold, you are immediately reminded that you are part of a crowd watching the video. Further, that you can have a conversation about the video with that crowd. It is much less obvious in Youtube than in Viddler.
It’s all about content, eyballs, and deals in the state of the video market flux, thats why Hulu is canabalizing the market.
YT wants this but their inceptual vision was UGC, know they are shifting into a premium/UGC vision, whether YT can worship both masters is yet to be seen.
Rupert Murdoch Vs Youtube-
Lets get ready to rummmmble.
I remember Google Videos tried something similar by having free content and pay to watch content to encourage more/better videos. That didn’t go too well.
hehe
AdDirector
Hopefully not. :\ I like YouTube as it is right now.
怎么样？
I like it.
I do not like at all the way as Google is monopolizing the whole world wide web… Do we need a new Microsoft?
So much for the talk around the blogs in recent weeks of Google jettisoning YT for cash flow reasons then, I suppose?
Bah! Once you’re anti-social, you can’t become social, ok? Too many users already know who you are. Give it up Google. Such is the word of Sanjay.
Google recently became the first company to become worth more than $100 billion. How can you be that big and important and understand social media ;0)
This goes to shows how prevalent video demand has become in the social networking space. Consumers want to share and interact with more videos, faster and easier. That’s why video search engines that offer an easier way to find and share videos from multiple content providers (not just YouTube) will gain more popularity, especially as the online video space gets more crowded.
The bigger question is how will Google improve the process of searching, sharing, and delivering videos other than YT without shooting themselves in the foot?
Insightful, Brilliant, yet with the content king being HULU, Youtube wont keep users on Google property. Hell, get me some interesting people on Youtube and maybe I’ll put CHUCK VS. on pause.