The Future Of Online Video

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Video is what video is. You can shoot it cheaply or you can produce cinematic quality. Is it ever going to change?

In many instances, it takes someone who is not an expert in a specific area/channel to truly point out the major cultural shifts that are taking place in our world. Have you ever really stopped to think about what our YouTube generation is actually doing to our global conscience? Does that sound like radical thinking? Is it possible that people shooting videos of dogs skateboarding, baby panda bears sneezing or teenagers re-enacting their favorite professional wrestling antics are ever going to change the world? We have to appreciate that beneath the veneer of the asinine videos is a deep wealth of new information, stories and issues that connects us all (you just have to dig beneath the gloss of the haul videos to find it).

There is a video what will show you the future of online video. 

Chris Anderson is a fascinating individual. As the curator of TED, he acts as host and chief instigator in not only one of the most fascinating conferences (one that I am proud to attend), but in helping to bring people together to discuss and ideate around some of the biggest challenges and opportunities that face our world. His global perspective has helped to open up the many presentations that take place in TED’s highly-exclusive events. Known as TED Talks, these video presentation have been seen millions and millions of times and translated into hundreds of languages. Most recently, Anderson presented the concept of Crowd Accelerated Innovation at the TED Global 2010 event.

Here is 19-minutes on the future of online video…

29 comments

  1. Am moved, inspired and excited about the future! Thanks for posting Mitch ~ will be forever one of my favorite TED talks and I intend to share! 🙂

  2. An excellent video — The playing field is tilted towards to individual by providing them with a platform. Never before in human history has there been so much freedom to create.

  3. One of the best TED videos I’ve seen in a while (and that says a lot!). With all the negative messaging in the media these days, it’s great to see something so positive. My two key takeaways: (1) Web video is pushing innovation through faster and more co-operative learning, and (2) Everyone is a student, everyone is a teacher.

  4. Interesting. But, I don’t think there is anything new here and that he was really just stating the obvious. “Crowd Accelerated Innovation” has alway been around, the Internet has just made the whole process more efficient and larger scale. Sorry I’m not more impressed by the talk. Thanks for posting, Mitch.

  5. Chris does paint an exciting and inspiring vision. But to your point, not all videos are created equal. They can pander, as many do, or they can move people. It would be nice if more people aimed higher.

  6. Very interesting but what Anderson doesn’t mention is that for every Kumera slum with internet access there are thousands that don’t have it – many because powerful forces don’t want them to. Also he doesn’t address points of view of web gurus like Gerrry McGovern who say “text is more important than images on the Web [and] the Web is primarily a text-driven medium and will remain so despite the rise of video.” What does this mean in places with high rates of illiteracy for example?
    McGovern’s post on text ruling the web:
    http://www.gerrymcgovern.com/nt/2010/nt-2010-09-27-Text-images.htm

  7. If you live and breathe this space, it’s hard to be impressed by anything. I was, personally, blown away by it. Why? Because it gave me the chance to take a step back and realize that I get very jaded by technology and connectivity. The video made me that much more appreciative of the societal changes that the Internet and Social Media have brought forth.

  8. It means that we’re not at the end of the road just yet. It means that we have space for more innovation and more insights. It means that we still have to fight for that very critical last mile of connectivity. I also think it means that it’s going to happen via mobile and not the web browser as we know it to date.

  9. Hi Mitch,
    I think Chris Anderson did a spectacular job of representing the power that online video is having in our world. For many years I’ve imagined what kind of impact video will have online. He did a great job painting the picture for me.
    I’m a recent business grad in Toronto and I’ve really been amazed for years at the power that online video sharing has particularly the growth in popularity of sites like YouTube.
    As people learn to integrate and organize video streaming in a fashion where videos can become a huge learning platform to help disseminate information to the world. I believe it will create huge shifts in society. My hope is that sensitive and important issues that we as a human race are facing will see some priorities on these platforms. With the capability of having many i-witness perspectives on almost any major event in the world it’s hard not to feel connected.
    I’m also excited about the social change it will bring the world, Rick.
    As I enter the job market I’m finding myself very dissatisfied with most corporate cultures. I believe that the values of many companies need to be re-evaluated to become more sustainable. This wave of radical openness and the platforms to share opinions will hopefully bring some out some deeper human values that are often overshadowed in the corporate limelight.
    I looking forward to see the crowd innovation wheel powered by wholesome values. Such as respect, integrity, environmental sustainability and freedom versus the more negative and cannibalistic ones. It will be interesting to see what side of values will become more dominate in the online world.
    I guess it’s up to us! Many will avoid burning bridges even more so then in the past. After all everyone is connected. 😉

  10. Bill is pretty much right, nothing said is new. BUT, when it is said by someone like Chris Andersen with his track record in media, then ‘old news’ is truly reinvigorated. Sometimes we need to be reminded of the obvious, and simple things to be inspired to get off our behinds and do ‘that great thing’.
    Hearing from the founder of TED reviewing his own success is a good wake up call for all of us in this space…

  11. Great point about mobile Mitch. In fact, most of the really innovative examples from the developing world that I’ve seen use simple mobile phone text messaging. This suggests they’re finding ways to deal with illiteracy because people still have to read the messages.

  12. It will probably be many more/long years before we see that type of radical innovation from the corporate standpoint, but we are seeing some major (and smaller) corporations move towards this direction. It’s not easy. It will take some time… it will be interesting.

  13. Yeah I suppose the big corporate wheels tend not be so nimble.
    I attended the Macroeconomics book launch yesterday and was without surprised inspired by the ideas Don Tapscott and Anthony Williams were sharing on how the web will bring networked intelligence together to help remodel our institutions. A good point that came up was that civic societies and individuals would become pillars in these networks. Some that would rival the level of influence of major corporate brands.
    Having grown up digital with an adolescence bathed in bits. I feel that a newer generation having spent so many hours of their childhood being connected, will have a higher capacity/tolerance for radical innovations through these networks.
    I say let the changes begin!
    Thanks for the insight.

  14. That generation of Digital Natives won’t even understand what a world was like when individuals could not publish whatever they want – in text, audio, images and video – for the world to see. Imagine the culture that it will bring forward…

  15. YES! Imagination is a very powerful gift we humans have. I’ve been imagining the future A LOT lately. As James Cameron put it in his address at the Ted Conference imagination is a force that can actually manifest reality. http://bit.ly/ddqaUn
    Digital natives do tend to stir up the pot with what they begin to experience and consume. I believe there will be many shifts in priorities that we begin to see.
    Exciting times !

  16. As you say, it’s not necessarily about the quality of the grain on the film, but the availability and accessibility… Some great quotes. I love the concept of radical openness. A leap of faith that many companies struggle to imagine bringing in business. Video driven collaboration and innovation. “The brain goes global.” Fab.

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