Is User-Produced Video Losing its Appeal?

The explosion of online video on the Web used to be all about amateurs. Not anymore. Apparently, the average Web user has become bored with clips of lip-syncing 7-year-olds and kittens falling asleep. Professionally produced programming surpasses amateur video as the hottest trend in online video. VideoEgg co-founder Matt Sanchez. z would know: Video Egg provides producers with tools for making and delivering ads to online videos.

Moves made by Bebo, a social media site, Sony, and ManiaTV, a video destination with more than 3,000 user-generated video channels. Bebo last week decided to open its pages to traditional media providers to boost its online video offerings. A few weeks ago, ManiaTV scrapped its user-generated channels altogether due. Earlier in July, Sony relaunched Grouper, its online video property, as a professional-grade content site only.

A study by Pew Internet & American Life indicates that viewers are most interested in news videos, followed by comedy bits and television shows. Research by Burst Media, an Internet ad network that studies the video market, echoed the findings, ranking news clips, movie trailers, comedy sketches, music videos, and TV shows as the top categories.

The market has reached a saturation point, as sites like YouTube continue to pull in the bulk of user-generated video content. Also, the newness of being able to broadcast yourself online is starting to wear off. Professionals tend to do it better, and more often.

And that's when your real opportunities for career development rev up!

SOURCE:Business Week

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