Video promise

Two bigs trends on the web right now are Social Networking and Video. I've been following internet-based video off-and-on, starting when I did some consulting for a CLEC in 1998. I also looked at IP-based video conferencing for international collaboration. It always seemed to me that video was a promise that never delivers; stiff video conferences and postage stamp-sized choppy video were hard to get excited about.

Well, consumer video (like youtube) is changing all that as it takes off, clearly exploding in use. The combination of high-speed internet and the fact that almost all single-shot digital cameras can also shoot and download video clearly helps. Anyone can shoot a video and download it, and then have youtube or similar deliver it at no cost. Google search results now frequently include videos.

What crystallized the potential of video for me was my own experience playing the guitar. As I hear a song that I would like to learn to play, I now go to youtube to see how other amateurs guitarists have played it. They've shot themselves close-up, with view of guitar fret board, so you can see what chords and strumming patterns they are playing, verses trying to learn the song from listening to the recording. This has been a completely breakthrough for me on new songs, and has improved my playing immeasurably.

I can't help but imagine that there are thousands of other examples, both personal and business, where simple-shot video can be used as a training, business, sales or help tool. Expect to see video really take off in 2008.