eNews Exclusive: Online Video Distribution

In the past, that meant either wearing out a lot of shoe leather going from door to door to convince your friends to see it, paying for VHS or DVD distribution or convincing a TV producer to air it.

Fortunately, those bad old days are gone forever, thanks to the Internet. However, too many still think that video distribution means two choices: YouTube ( www.youtube.com) and Google Video (http://video.google.com). And while those early heavyweights are still often great choices, several other online video options have entered the fray. But first, let's go inside YouTube to understand how Internet video distribution came of age in 2005.

YouTube got there early and made its name as the McDonald's of online video distribution, with millions and millions served. Launched in late 2005 and purchased less than a year later by Google for a cool $1.65 billion, it was one of the first sites that made it easier for bloggers and others on the Internet to embed video clips on their Web pages. (http://tinyurl.com/2n4c7q)

Before YouTube, online video often required an annoying wait while its data stream was downloaded and buffered into the viewing computer. YouTube considerably increased download speed for most broadband users by using Macromedia's Flash Player 7 or higher (already in about 90 percent of Web browsers) and the Sorenson Spark H.263 video codec (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/YouTube). The use of a readily-available viewer like Flash Player meant that although the video creator still needed a little technical savvy to upload the video, the viewer had nothing to do but click. And that was the secret sauce.

Reuters estimates that YouTube has more visitors than those of all of its rivals - combined. However, YouTube has its flaws. It has a reputation for removing any video that might remotely have a copyright violation and anything vaguely controversial, if someone complains. And unless you've got a high-end "director's account" with the site, your videos will have to be under ten minutes in le…