Flickr Video »
Everyone on the internet is talking about the new feature that Flickr added last night: Video. Flickr Pro users can now upload videos up to 90 seconds long to Flickr. They are treated just like photos: You can tag them, add them to sets and groups, mark them as viewable only by friends and family, geotag them, and so on.
The most interesting feature of this service is the 90 second limit on video, which I think is a brilliant policy. First, it encourages people to upload their own original content rather than TV shows and screencasts, which means much less legal hassle for Flickr and more interesting content for the viewers.
Second, and more importantly, it means that videos will be short. YouTube videos tend to suffer from terrible, sometimes nonexistent, editing. They often take four or five minutes to get to the point, prefaced by multiple misspelled text transitions from Windows Movie Maker dubbed with awful pop music. The 90 second limit means that people are force to cut out most of the crap.
And, if you think about it, most of the time you aren’t shooting full-length videos with your camera. You’re shooting short clips of interesting stuff, which this service is perfect for.
I’ve given the feature a try myself, uploading a video showing off some painting I did yesterday, in case you’re interested. The link above goes to a video of a narcoleptic cat, which is the cutest thing EVAR. (That’s right, it’s a cat. On the internet. The internet likes cats. The internet is apparently full of crazy cat ladies.)
Overall, I think that this is an excellent move for Flickr, and I’m looking forward to seeing what people put on the site.
The most interesting feature of this service is the 90 second limit on video, which I think is a brilliant policy. First, it encourages people to upload their own original content rather than TV shows and screencasts, which means much less legal hassle for Flickr and more interesting content for the viewers.
Second, and more importantly, it means that videos will be short. YouTube videos tend to suffer from terrible, sometimes nonexistent, editing. They often take four or five minutes to get to the point, prefaced by multiple misspelled text transitions from Windows Movie Maker dubbed with awful pop music. The 90 second limit means that people are force to cut out most of the crap.
And, if you think about it, most of the time you aren’t shooting full-length videos with your camera. You’re shooting short clips of interesting stuff, which this service is perfect for.
I’ve given the feature a try myself, uploading a video showing off some painting I did yesterday, in case you’re interested. The link above goes to a video of a narcoleptic cat, which is the cutest thing EVAR. (That’s right, it’s a cat. On the internet. The internet likes cats. The internet is apparently full of crazy cat ladies.)
Overall, I think that this is an excellent move for Flickr, and I’m looking forward to seeing what people put on the site.