Jon Hickey

Well, it looks like the war is over.  Microsoft is conceding to YouTube by scaling back on their video service Soapbox.

Wait, Microsoft has a video service?  Apparently they do.

For some reason, Microsoft likes to try to make an application to compete in every market.  When it comes to online video, this really doesn’t make sense.

In economics, the network effect refers to the “effect that one user of a good or service has on the value of that product to other people” (Wikipedia).  Video sites like YouTube are an example of a positive network effect.  The more people that use the site, the more valuable the site becomes.

Because YouTube absolutely dominates other video services in number of users (it is currently the number 4 visited site on the internet according to Alexa), the value of a video posted on YouTube is higher than that of one posted on another video site such as Blip.tv or Vimeo.  Even though these services provide higher quality video compression and embeds, it is hard to beat the reach you can achieve with YouTube.

So what are the implications of YouTube’s dominance of online video?  When it comes to storytelling online, there are a few.  Primarily, when making a video for the web, it is best to have YouTube’s standards in mind.  This means 10 minutes in length maximum and the compression that YouTube recommends at the time.  Because YouTube has finally gone widescreen, storytellers can more freely shoot in 16×9.  Until about 6 months ago, this wasn’t the case.

Moreover, storytellers online need to take the YouTube community and culture into account if they wish to reach a broad audience.  Short videos are preffered for most, and something that catches attention early is necessary.  What might work well in a more traditional television or DVD setting might fail on YouTube.  Because of YouTube’s large market share, storytellers are constrained by their policies and culture moreso than other video services.

While I may not like the fact that I am constrained by YouTube’s policies and culture when I create online video, I do think it is wise for Microsoft to pull back their video service.  With something as powerful and wide-reaching as YouTube, we really don’t need another video service.  Services like Vimeo and Blip.tv are great providers for niche users, but Microsoft clearly isn’t a niche-chasing company.

Very few people have every heard of Soapbox.  With the immense amount of value coming out of YouTube, that really isn’t a bad thing.

I’ve started work on my second Master’s degree at the UW MCDM.  One of my classes, Strategies for Digital Storytelling, requires me to turn in my assignments in blog form.  This is great for me, as I will finally be able to keep my blog active again!
Our class is trying to do something pretty cool [...]

(Crossposted from YongoPal)
In February, my long time friend and roommate, Darien asked me to help him revive his company, now named YongoPal.  The company provides conversational English tutoring to South Koreans.
Quite a bit has happened in the last few months, and I want to briefly reflect on the progress we’ve made since this project came [...]

Image via CrunchBase

Some pretty fun Twitter memes have popped up lately - most notably the #nerdpickuplines meme.  #nerdpickuplines was a blast for the nerd community, and even earned itself an article in the L.A. Times.  Yesterday a less noticed Twitter meme came to my attention.  Edufire, an online video learning company, decided to have some [...]

I love the Twitter community.  I often find myself refreshing my browser, excited to see interesting articles people have stumbled upon, small tidbits of wisdom, or fun, character-building status updates.  In my 3 months on Twitter, I have been pretty happy with those I’ve followed.  That is, until recently.
I am admittedly a newbie to Twitter, [...]

My research for my next laptop has begun!  Because I don’t game very often, and my laptop use is usually limited to basic Photoshop and Dreamweaver, I was thinking maybe a high powered netbook would be nice to have.  The great portability and long battery life are very appealing to a guy that often works [...]

Dear MacBook Pro,
I know this is a little weird to do through a blog, but I don’t know any other way to confront you about some issues I’ve been having lately.
When we first got together this summer, things were great.  Sure your keyboard randomly stopped working, and your speakers shut off on occasion, but I [...]

With the success of the Obama campaign, governments are finally starting to talk about web 2.0 and how it can be used to improve services.  In a recent essay, Bill Schrier, the Chief Technology Officer for the City of Seattle, presents ways in which government can use web 2.0 to create a better community and [...]

I admit I don’t ride the bus as much as I should.  I am one of those people that preach public transportation, but generally opt for the irresponsible car option.  That being said, I do take the bus about once each week.  Because I don’t know the bus routes very well, I use the King [...]

My business partner, Mike, and I just got our first website to go live a few nights ago for our new business Sayenko Design. The site is for a small window cleaning business in Bellevue. The site is simple, yet professional, and we are pretty happy with it.

The name of the business is ProCare Advantage.

We tried to design the site in a way that allows the client to update content easily. Both the text on each page and the forms are easy to edit through Wordpress.

A blog was also included to help put a more human face on the business, while boosting search engine optimization.