207 Records – Entertainment

It is now the beginning of 2009 and we, the ardent users of interactive technology are riding the crest of a Golden Wave of web video and corporate website video possibilities. I have no doubt that in a conceptually altered Chinese calendar this would be the ‘Year of the WebVideo’ in all its’ various forms and methods of deployment. Anyhow, i’ve been reading up on the subject and this is the impression i’m getting from people in the know.

Technology has again moved forward and new encoding procedures coupled with a general awareness of narrative have brought the great and fantastic possibilities of video, online and into the hands of the common man. His or her under £150,000 gross operation is obviously crying out for an effective means of one on one communication and somewhere along the line I read that potential customers are 4 times more likely to become actual customers if your web presence is graced with the luminance of video. People buy off people! CEO’s everywhere have, for some time now been scrambling to put into place the most efficient systems and operations that will fully exploit this ardently touted paradigm shift in online visual expectancy. The figures are all there. Findings in the American market have indicated that the number of consumers who actively engaged in the viewing of online video rose by 18% in the second half of 2006. A total of 3. 7 billion streams having been watched. Male to female ratios stand close to even on a 52-48 percentage scale. Surprisingly in 2006 it was Yahoo Video that led the pack with around 21 million visitors a month.

MySpace came in a close second with around 20 million a month. So with the stats in mind I guess it wasn’t that surprising to see Google swallow up YouTube which was getting around 16 million faces a month. According to Jack Flanegan, executive vice president of ComScore Media Metrix who, amongst other things provide detailed analysis of online consumer activity is quoted as saying: “Consumers clearly view video as one of the most accessible, interesting and entertaining sources of content on the web”. And, well. . . I completely agree. Video has an accessible grounding in reality, and. . . all things considered. . . there’s a thirst for it. We are all obsessed with peeping through the crack in the doorway, watching without ‘being watched’.

Video was built for this kind of mentality. There’s no way I would be writing this blog about some useless, defective communication format sent to the archives of history to hang out with smoke signals. Oh no, not me! I am here and now and so is online video, and in this here and now if you want to make some money through your online presence, WebVideos are the progressive medium you should employ. Ditch the expensive call centers and put your customer service rep on your site in an interactive video display for first hand guidance. Why have a static image of your product when a WebVideo can shift more units. Go ahead, make that play for a full grasp of socially relevant media deployment, move forward, gain the edge. This is the 21st Century in the history of the fine beast that is man. What? You don’t have video on your website?

How to do you maintain peoples interest? Things must be so tough for you. How are you coping? Anyhow that’s what people were saying about websites and that soon caught on. Now look where we are. If the internet is just another room to peer into then it stands to reason that it’s gotta have a TV in the corner. So how do you go about employing video on your website? What is the right format? More importantly, what should it look like? Obviously with the advent of new encoding procedures it has become incredibly easy for web deployment of video. At the forefront of this new wave of encoding is the On2 VP6 codec which is used primarily by Macromedia Flash 8 and up. The ‘flash player’ is freely available for download and is reportedly on 96% of all internet configured Windows & Macintosh computers. Which is pretty high as far as stats go. Java (84%), Windows Media Player (87%) and Apple Quicktime (59%) all trail behind. Flash enables anyone to stream videos from their browsers cache at a fraction of the size of other formats thanks to the On2 VP6 compression. Also it has a whole different level of options for interactivity that none of the others have. With flash you can play a hundred videos through the same file without leaving the page and tag a form on the end of the video asking for comments. This is sure to keep people immersed in an interactive video experience. WARNING – Ideas not supplied. Well. . . not for free that’s for sure. Flash was built for the active medium of the internet and it’s flourishing. Micro-sites or the huge rise of . tv sites are the high end of video usage for a lot of companies, but high end means high prices, maybe six grand upwards is not in your budget. The average business will probably find use for a handful of videos for an initial outlay of a couple of grand. Obviously there will be niche markets out there where the businesses will have to have video on their site and cannot function without it. Soon enough though it will all be like that. As prophetic as that sounds, I can only image this sort of thing snowballing. Remember the Golden Wave. Ride it and flourish. For if you don’t, it will drown you. Anyhow, there are companies out there that will put together a 1 minute video for you for around £500, but i’ve seen these videos and from a professional standpoint I know they are operating on a second rate level. The obvious lack of perfectionist ideals and aspirations belongs only to the guy who amazes himself too easily. Another form of online video is the 30 second slot on the homepage. This is fast becoming the successor to the animated header.

The web has for the most part been a silent affair, with users choosing to listen to their favorite band whilst surfing away. Video is changing that and users are becoming used to a little noise. Over time the expectancy values will change and sound on every website will no doubt become a normal affair. This is why a 30 second, dynamic montage based intro will succeed. Next up is the talking head which can run anywhere from between 20 seconds to 3 minutes long. The talking head can offer a much subtler welcome message and when combined with the use of graphic elements and transparent backgrounds it can still retain an element of entertainment. It has a keen simplicity that doesn’t overload the user and can be acquired for around a grand a minute and upwards, depending on your demands for graphics or titles.

Product or service explanations are very popular uses of the talking head by many companies from insurance to mobile phones. A sort of very subtle advert or showcase to watch at the users discretion. I mean why have bunch of still photographs taken from every conceivable angle when for a little extra cash you can have a 30 second video of someone showcasing the product.

No doubt the usual link to ‘enlarge image’ will change to something like ‘view product video’. A handful of these could be produced for around £500 a pop and considering the ‘click through’ rate you’re bound to make your money back shifting extra units. All this of course is small change in comparison to what the majority of people are responding to. That my less than inebriated readers is of course, entertainment! By far the single most popular use of video ever. Billions of people, like fragmented herds of hedonistic swine, completely alienated from police state politics are lining up with baited breath for the latest ‘close shave’ video or some pair of seventeen year old girls trying their hand at singing Whitney Houstens’ “I Will Always Love You’. This is bedroom theatre at its’ greatest. This is where the mainstay of WebVideo opportunity lies. Well. . . where does this leave the average website I hear you bleat? Simple. Format popularity has very specific impacts on everyday habit and culture. Just look at how far the viewing screen itself has come in all its’ varying forms. The impact entertainment video has on the web is perfectly aligned with a certain expectancy. Users grow through saturation of an idea to expect an element of it in all aspects their everyday lives.

The majority of the world still have boring day jobs and they still yearn for excitement and entertainment. The more saturated we become with online video entertainment as it stands the more demanding we will become. Static websites will always be around because some things need to be static, but hey. . . if it can be brought to life it better be, cause otherwise i’m outta yer. Boring!!!

The web may well be conceptually as a whole a fascinating work of art, but individual sites are but a mere brush stroke on a gigantic canvas of information. There are a lot of people in the world, maybe 7 billion in all and a few billion of these have internet ready computers, a thirst for entertainment, short attention span and a pocket full of cash to spend on anything that can hold their interest long enough to get their bank card out. If you haven’t got video on your website in one form or another, well. . . what have you got?

Are you looking to use the internet as a source of entertainment?  With high movie renting costs, cable costs, and satellite TV costs, many people are starting to turn to the internet.   One of the reasons for that is because the internet is a great source of entertainment.   There are a large number of websites, including YouTube, can that literally leave you laughing or crying for hours.

If you are looking for videos to watch online, as it was previously mentioned, you are urged to visit YouTube.   YouTube is a video sharing website that allows internet users, just like you, to not only watch videos, but also share their own. Allowing other internet users to upload their own videos is one of the reasons why YouTube has become so popular and it is one of the many reasons why YouTube has an unlimited number of videos to choose from.   In fact, YouTube has so many videos to choose from that they had to categorize them all, which actually makes it easier to find YouTube videos that interest you, as a viewer.

One of the most popular YouTube video categories is comedy.   The comedy category on YouTube tends to include comedy sketches, standup acts, as well as comedy spoofs.   A large number of the comedy videos found on YouTube are staged or rehearsed, but there are many videos that were just taken at the spur of the moment.   Many times, you will find that these videos are the funniest.   No matter what type of YouTube comedy video you watch, you will likely be left laughing.

Another popular YouTube video category is that of entertainment.   When it comes to entertainment videos, you will find that you have a wide variety of different videos to choose from. While it is still possible to find videos that have clips of your favorite music videos, television shows, or movies, YouTube is trying to cut down on those videos, as they don’t have permission to broadcast many of them right now.   Other entertainment videos include video reviews of movies or television shows, gossip, or amateur reporting events.

Pets and animals is another popular YouTube video category.   As you likely already know, videos in this category are centered on pets, in one way or another.   In some cases, YouTube members are showing off a new pet that they got, but many pet videos are also comedy related.   A lot of YouTube members like posting videos of their pets doing something funny, unique, or cute.   If you love pets, you will sure enjoy watching many of the pet videos that can be found under the pets and animals section on YouTube.

Travel and places is another popular video category on YouTube.   This YouTube category also acts, in a way, to educate viewers.   Many of the videos found under the YouTube travel and places category are videos that members shot when they were traveling, many times in a foreign country. For that reason, it is common to find videos that take you on a tour or show you well-known tourist attractions.   If you are interested in planning a vacation, but you don’t know yet where you should go, you will want to examine some of the travel and places videos that can be found on YouTube. One more popular YouTube video category is that of people and blogs.   This is where many YouTube members post personal videos about themselves. One of the most popular types of videos found under the heading of people and blogs are video blogs.   Video blogs are like traditional blogs, but they are in video format.   With video blogs, YouTube members often outline their day or their week for all other internet users to watch. In most cases, you will find that many video blogs have a humorous side to them.

The previously outlined YouTube video categories are just a few of the many that exist.   Additional categories include How-To and Do It Yourself, Gadgets and Games, Film and Animation, Autos and Vehicles, Sports, Music, and News and Politics.   Basically, whatever you are looking for, entertainment wise, you should be able to find it on YouTube and with detailed categories, finding what you want is easy.

YouTube is a popular online website, which allows internet users, just like you, to share videos or watch an unlimited number of them.   While a good portion of the individuals who post videos on YouTube are just posting videos that they have laying around, there are many more who actually make videos with the sole purpose of uploading them to YouTube and sharing them with other internet users.   If you are one of those individuals, there are a number of points that you will want to keep in mind.

When it comes to making a YouTube video, one of the things that you will need is a video recording device.   Popular video recording devices include camcorder, webcams, as well as cell phones with video recording capabilities.   If at all possible, you will want to try and use a webcam or a camcorder, as these video recording devices often produce the best quality.   If you are looking to make your YouTube video be a hit, quality is something that you will want to take into consideration. Many YouTube video viewers dislike watching poor quality videos; in fact, not everyone sticks around to finish watching them.  

Editing is also something that you will want to take into consideration.   YouTube actually encourages you to examine your video before uploading it to their site.   If you notice anything that you would like changed, you are advised to edit your video before uploading it to YouTube.   Of course, you don’t have to edit your video if you don’t want to, but editing your video is also likely to improve the overall quality of your YouTube video.   It is also relatively easy to do.   Most computers come with movie editing software programs already installed.   It may even be a good idea to play around with a movie editing software program and your YouTube video; you may be surprised just how fun it can be.

It is also important that you think about and examine the content of your video, especially if you are planning on doing a comedy video.   Comedy videos are popular on YouTube, but you need to remember that a large number of people visit YouTube for entertainment.   Many of those individuals are from different races, sexes, and religions.   You will want to be cautious of offending any of your viewers, intentionally or not.   Keep in mind that comedy means different things to different individuals.   Of course, you have the right to make just about any type of YouTube video you want; you are advised to use your best judgment.   Should you be good at making YouTube videos, you may be able to make a name for yourself on YouTube, but you will want it to be a good one.  

It is also important that you examine safety when making a YouTube video.   As previously mentioned, comedy videos are popular on YouTube and so are video blogs.   Video blogs are where internet uses recite their blog in front of a camera, instead of in print.   Video blogs are fun to do, but many video blogers, both on and off of YouTube, make the mistake of giving out too much information about themselves.   For your safety, you will want to avoid giving your real name, especially if you are showing your face on your video blog.   It is advised that you do not mention your real name in any of your YouTube videos, but you definitely do not want to mention your address or any of your phone numbers.   Not divulging your personal information is for your own safety.   You need to remember that you never really know who is watching your YouTube videos or what they are thinking.  

The above mentioned points are just a few of the many that you will want to keep in mind, before making a video which will later be posted on YouTube.   In short, aim for quality and keep internet safety in mind and your YouTube video could end up being a hit.

This paper explores the challenges Broadcasters face when assessing video quality. Many factors affect the video before it gets to the TV: compression, image processing, scaling, decoding, transmission, etc.
Video processing and compression algorithms change the characteristics of the original program in the quest of reducing the bandwidth needed to send the programming information to the home. The art is to do this without allowing the audience to perceive a change in video quality. Successful video processing and compression algorithms perform the desired modifications while presenting a result to the viewer that, subjectively, looks natural and realistic. This sounds difficult, but it is necessary when transmitting many channels of high-quality programming.
Each broadcaster – traditional or web caster – must deal with rapidly changing varieties of programming, new video processing algorithms, and new compression algorithms. Video processing and compression companies continuously invent sophisticated ways to reduce the huge bandwidth requirements to manageable levels. How can broadcasters know if a new algorithm is better than their current choice?
Broadcasters invite the various video processing and compression companies into their R&D facilities, and perform side-by-side tests also known as a “bake-off”. Each vendor starts with the same source material, and does their best to reduce the bandwidth while keeping the video quality high.
The broadcaster shows the results to a group of experts and asks them, which one is the best. This is termed subjective video analysis, and it measures the overall perceived video quality. The most commonly used video quality evaluation method is the Mean Opinion Score (MOS), recommended by the ITU. It consists in having several experts viewing a known distorted video sequences in order to rate its quality, according to a predefined quality scale. By doing this the expert viewers are trained to build a mapping between the quality scale and a set of processed video sequences. After the “training” is complete, the subjects are then asked to rate the new video processing algorithms.
Simply stated, the test setup is
* Start with a known video sequence.
* New Video Processing system alters the video sequence.
* Display the original and processed video sequences.
* Bring in experts to subjectively vote.
Complexity arises as
* New Video Processing systems may need new equipment to playback the video sequences.
* The original and processed video sequences should be displayed in random orders.
* Expert viewers are expensive and do not produce repeatable results.
Easier Solution
To streamline the process, equipment for video quality testing needs to be defined, which can capture, play, and analyze any two video sequences. Further, as new input/output modules are continuously under development, the test equipment should use an open-architecture approach to ease upgradeability.
Video Clarity defined the ClearView product line with these objectives in mind.
* Capture video sequences in as many formats as possible.
* Convert all video sequences to user-selectable resolution.
* Translate all video sequences to uncompressed Y’CbCr 4:2:2 or RGB 4:4:4.
* Support 8 and 10-bit data paths with upgradeability to future 12-bit modes.
* Store the video sequences as frames (fields) so that they can be played at any rate.
* Display the video sequences in real time in multiple viewing modes.
* Apply objective metrics to the video sequences.
* Export pieces of video sequences to further analyze off-line.
* Use a standard operating system so that the operator can run 3rd party analysis applications.
By working in the uncompressed domain, any two video processing algorithms can be compared independent of compression or other processing.
To further simplify the work flow, any video sequence can be played; while capturing another video sequence, thus, combining the video server and capture device into one unit. By doing this, the original source is already inside the test equipment so captured content alignment is easily obtained.
The original and processed video sequences can be displayed – side-by-side, mirrored, or seamless split – on a single display. This eliminates the need to calibrate two separate displays.
ClearView applies various objective metrics to the video sequences, generates graphs, and calculates an objective score. ClearView includes PSNR, Spatial Information and Temporal Information (as proposed in ITU-T P. 9210). These metrics are the basis for more sophisticate metrics like VQM, JND, which are being analyzed by organizations like VQEG, VPQM, and SMPTE.
ClearView displays multiple video sequences, even if they are played at different rates (i. e. mobile phone video compared to TV) for the expert viewers; while recording the objective metric scores. While the MOS cannot be repeated, the objective metric can, easily and readily.
Since the system is based on an open, Windows-based architecture, any objective measurement algorithm can be modeled off-line using the stored video sequences.
Benefits
* Repeatable tests, quantitative results, and a streamlined setup.
* Analyze 2 video sequences in real-time up to 1080P.
* Input virtually any file type or capture from any digital or analog source.
* Multiple viewing modes are presented on a single display – no need to calibrate 2 separate Television displays to compare video sequences.
* Integrated uncompressed, high definition Video Server and Capture Device.
* Ability to Play 2 fully uncompressed, HD Streams in Real-Time.
* Hybrid Solution with Integrated Objective Metrics and Subjective Viewing Modes.
Case Examples
A Broadcaster or Service Provider needs to
* Play out “Source” video sequences at various resolutions and rates to their encoder and/or video processing equipment.
* Capture the output of the encoder and/or video processing equipment.
* Capture the output from the STB.
* Test the quality of the encoder, video processing, and set-top box equipments. To do this, they need to
o Bring in Subjective Experts to choose the appropriate vendor (“bake-off”) or to choose the correct settings.
o Generate a Score for repeatability.
A Solution/System Integrator creates a broadcast solution using encoder, network, video processing, VOD, conditional access, and set-top box providers. They market and sell their solution to Broadcasters or Service Providers. So they perform all of the above tests. When they cannot bring the Broadcaster or Service Provider into their viewing room to see the solution, they would like to take the test results to the Broadcaster. Thus, they have the additional requirement for a
* Portable solution to show side-by-side comparisons to the Broadcaster or Service Provider.
Summary
ClearView takes advantage of the high-reliability of today’s off-the-shelf computer platforms. This ensures that products are made with state-of-the-art hardware, while at the same time avoiding the high cost of custom designs.
ClearView provides broadcasters, video researchers, compression developers with the unique ability to capture, play-out, and analyze video sequences. Objective measurements are generated and logged for repeatable tests.

Consider the following five ways to profit from internet video just five of many ways. I could have listed five more but it would make the article to long. These five ways are good to get started.
1. Upload Your Videos To Ad Revenue Sharing Sites.
Although YouTube is the leader in video sharing and syndication it has only just introduced placing adverts on its videos to monetize the site. Despite the fact that over 37000 videos are submitted each day only those videos from YouTubes’ professional content partners and over 70 independent partner channels will have their videos monetized and receive a percentage of the income.
To profit from submitting your videos then you must look elsewhere and Revver should be your first stop. Revver is. .
. a video-sharing platform built the way the internet really works. We support the free and unlimited sharing of media. Our unique technology tracks and monetizes videos as they spread virally across the web, so no matter where your creativity travels, you benefit.
. . the viral video network that pays. We connect video makers and sharers with sponsors in a free and open marketplace that rewards them for doing what they do best.
. . committed to the artist. You have something to say and we built our network to empower you to say it.
Revver recently announced that it had paid out $1 million amongst 25000 video submitters. It is not the only site sharing revenue with video submitters depending on how many times the videos are viewed. Blip. TV and eefoof offer revenue sharing as well.
2. Combine Web Video With Affiliate Marketing
Review a product with a well written article. Lots of new products on the market now have a video embedded within the sales landing page. Using a program such as Affiliate Video Brander you can make use of the sales page video and incorporate it into your article or blog post.
This has many advantages, no cost to you, no time spent producing the video and not even the techie knowledge on how to make videos. As long as you receive permission to show the video, and why wouldn’t you as the product owner wants to sell as much product as possible, all you have to do is show the video and collect the affiliate commissions.
3. Create Your Own Google Video Site.
Most movies available on Google Video can be embedded on any web page. If the option is available for the video, there will be a link next to it that gives you the embed code.
If you create a niche site that has plenty of videos available at Google Video and build the site with WordPress you can quickly have a site where you can continuously add new content, much loved by Google. You can find videos about dogs, martial arts and DIY just to name a few.
Create a post for each video, write some text about what is covered in the video and make it interesting. Add Google AdSense ads and/or related product affiliate links to the post and also include an opt in box to capture your viewers email address to notify them of new videos and related offers.
If this proves successful then you can research another niche and start an additional site.
4. Create Promotional Videos For Local Businesses
Once you have experience of making your own videos and have the confidence and equipment required then contact some of your local businesses and show them the benefits of adding video to their websites or starting a website if they do not have one already. I know of a pest control website in the USA which has increased business by displaying funny videos about, you guessed it, pests.
Obvious potential clients would be Realtors, Hotels, Leisure Centers and Car Dealers. It is advisable to license the videos to your clients as it would cost them less to start with and encourage more business, especially once they start to benefit from your input.
Create your own website promoting your services and start advertising in the local press and at the venues of local business and society meetings. Print up business cards to pass around.
5. Place Affiliate Links in Your Own Videos
When you are hosting your own videos or paying for a paid web video service then you have control over your videos and can add redirect websites to the video to take your viewers to your affiliate partners.
You cannot add redirect websites to videos submitted to YouTube and other free video sharing sites or video syndication sites.
This is just five ideas on ways to profit from web videos. There are more ways than this and maybe you can think of more yourself. There is no time like the present to get started so do it now.