Is Video Not “Web 2.0” Anymore?
This morning I scanned the program for the upcoming Web 2.0 Expo in San Francisco for sessions I should cover for NewTeeVee. It turns out there’s not a single online video panel or speech on the agenda, with the exception of a 10-minute talk by Current TV.
I usually consider online video to be a part of the greater Web 2.0 sector, especially if you consider the impact of YouTube on the key phenomena of user-generated content, the democratization of media, and the promise of a Google payday. But maybe web video is a separate category these days, as caught up as it’s gotten with the trappings of Hollywood.
I asked Web 2.0 Expo program co-chair Dave McClure to explain the absence of video from the agenda. “I don’t have a good answer other than it wasn’t any specific decision,” he said. Upon reflection, he said he was “second-guessing” whether or not the conference should have included an entire video track. “It’s kind of an interesting question whether it’s at the center of this or a different world.”
McClure said he did have a recent cancellation that I could fill with a video-oriented panel, if I had a good suggestion. Let me know if you guys have any ideas for something new and interesting (see here for who their audience is). I would want it to be significantly different, and more focused, than the panel I did there last year (not to say it wasn’t fun, but why repeat ourselves).
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Wow, that is surprising. Maybe video is becoming to ubiquitous it no longer demands any buzz mention?
Mark Schoneveld on April 15th, 2008 at 2:19 pm - Permalink
Hi Liz, one trend that we think a lot about is how video content and advertising can best use the web’s interactivity and community. IMO, many companies are still mainly using the web to distribute passive content.
Only recently are companies adding features like live chat on video (Ustream and Joost), interactive video polls (Ustream), seeing who else is watching a video (Youtube), and interactive advertising (Revision3/Videoclix).
I also think it’d be interesting to look at what content creators are doing on the web that is different and better than TV. Suggesting this is self-serving since we think we’re also innovating in this area but I’d love to hear from creators like Rev3, iChannel, and Ze Frank.
Mark on April 15th, 2008 at 4:51 pm - Permalink
Liz - “Curation” seems to be a big buzz word lately.
Group curated channels of video - like “Wikipedia for Video” - that can aggregate people around niche topics. This seems very Web 2.0 and is becoming bigger and bigger.
Engaged audiences + niche content + targeted advertising = Web 2.0 at its buzzword best!
http://www.mefeedia.com/channels/ for an example of channels curated by users to find “best of” feeds in specific topics.
Frank Sinton on April 15th, 2008 at 11:39 pm - Permalink
hi liz -
guess i didn’t realize my response was going to be included in a NewTeeVee post, however it’s accurate that we may have overlooked including more video-focused talks on the agenda.
still, there is a good bit of content throughout the show that includes online video as a significant component of most of today’s ‘Web 2.0′ development & marketing. in particular, several of the sessions & workshops on social media & marketing discuss how video is driving customer acquisition & promotion, and at least one of the launchpad companies will be featuring video as a distribution & media-sharing platform.
that said, online video might have been a good topic for one of our 3 mini-track focus areas. the ones we chose (mobile web, social platforms, and web operations) are pretty high-interest areas, but you could easily make the case that video is just as important.
certainly something for us to consider emphasizing more in future events, given how many startups are in the space & how much news is being generated there.
thanks for the feedback & we’ll try to expand our horizons going forward… (and likely recruit you to future program advisory boards as well! :)
regards,
Dave McClure on April 16th, 2008 at 10:44 pm - Permalink
[...] to Our Interactive Video Panel Tomorrow! Remember when we complained about the Web 2.0 Expo having no video-related panels? Well, the folks at O’Reilly listened [...]
Come to Our Interactive Video Panel Tomorrow! « NewTeeVee on April 24th, 2008 at 10:15 am - Permalink