Video on the Internet: You Tube

YouTube is to video what Flickr has been to photos. The Economist writes:

In December people were uploading 8,000 clips a day, and watching 3m a day. This month they were uploading 35,000 a day and watching 40m a day. With such amazing growth -- almost all by word of mouth, e-mail and hyperlink -- YouTube already has four times the traffic of Google Video, the online video market of the world's largest search-engine firm, and the nearest thing to a rival....

The success of YouTube points to another development. People are spending an average of 15 minutes on the site during each visit, enough to view several short, funny clips. This is because they are using YouTube for little breaks during a dull workday. And it is a lean-forward experience, as people sit in front of computer screens. This clip culture, as Mr Hurley calls it, is quite different from the lean-back experience of enjoying a half-hour show while reclining on the sofa.

About 80% come from rank amateurs, and another 10% from dedicated amateurs, such as young comedians hoping to use internet celebrity as a way into a career. Unlike the big media companies looking to recycle their film libraries, Google Video and YouTube are simply giving ordinary people a way to share clips.

YouTube has become an online giant overnight. It is now the dominant sources for streaming video on the internet.