“There’s not very much that can shake the power of iPod or iTunes. That is until YouTube co-founder Steve Chen says he wants to have ‘every music video ever created’ on YouTube.com within the next 18 months. Then, anyone that works for Apple is no doubt going to start their morning with a spew of profanity,” Christopher Hogg writes for Digital Journal.
Hogg writes, “EMI, the British music group behind Coldplay and Gorillaz, says it is now in talks with the Web TV giant to host music videos and other content on the popular social networking website.”
“YouTube, which has about 20 million monthly visitors watching more than 100 million videos every day, has confirmed it has held discussions with a number of record labels in a bid to enrich the site with videos. Warner Music Group, the music moniker that was involved in a takeover battle with EMI earlier this year, also says it is in talks with the site,” Hogg writes.
Hogg writes, “If YouTube gets its hands on ‘every’ music video, it marks the beginning and end of music as the world knows it. Without more content changes (please no crappy reality shows) channels like MTV and Canada’s popular MuchMusic are going to have to start taking longer summer vacations.”
Hogg writes, “But this news is a lot bigger than MTV: A free YouTube music video service will end the paid-for content business model and will trip iTunes until it falls flat on its face. Numero uno no more.”
Full article here.
Hogg’s prediction of iTunes’ death is amazingly premature. At what level of quality will the music labels allow these free YouTube music videos’ audio tracks to be encoded? How many songs off the average album even have a video? Those are just two questions that spring immediately to mind. A free YouTube music video service will almost certainly not end the paid-for content business model or “trip iTunes until it falls flat on its face.” Numero uno is much more secure than Hogg seems to understand.
[UPDATED: 9:44am. Changed “three” to “two” for the number of questions that sprang immediately to mind. There was a third, which we considered too obvious and thusly partially edited it out, but here it is now: How many music videos does Hogg think Apple sells anyway?]
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YouTube plans to take on Apple’s iTunes with free music videos – August 17, 2006
Killer sounds so harsh and final. And so far, never true.
No iTunes or iPod maimers or wounders? An iTunes slapper, stalker, spanker, or spitter? How about an iTunes ill willer or hurtful glancer?
Free YouTube videos just means that no one will pay money to YouTube for bad quality video downloads.
It also means that people will see the video, and if they like the music, go buy it at iTunes so it will play on their iPod, and saving Apple bandwidth in the process.
Why is it that everytime ANYONE steps into the online video or music business, others starts dubbing it as “iTunes/iPod killer”???
It’s not always so…. there’s plenty of room for other companies and methods – Apple may dominate it, but the don’t OWN it; just as Miscrosoft dominates computers, but don’t OWN them.
YouTube has no hardware to sell (inlike Apple), so, yeah, they can give them away for free with a few ads.
I THINKS IT’S A GOOD IDEA!!! Why buy a 3 minute video anyhow?
What’s incredible is that the writer of the article obviously has an anti-Apple bias. He just relishes the idea that iTunes will “stumble and fall” blah blah blah. Is there some sort of website that lists these predictions that people make over the years and shows how they are never right? They should take a public flogging for this kind of crap.
YouTube isn’t going to make a dent in iTunes. Steve Jobs shits better ideas than these YouTube shitheads can ever think of. But hey, if they want to pull a Michael Dell, then have at it!
You must be joking. “Every music video” is not even close to the library available on iTunes. I’ll bet not even 5% of my purchases on iTMS has been released as a music video; I’m not into rap songs and pop tunes. So how is this a threat to iTunes.
iTunes will remain #1 as long as iPod is king of portable media players. YouTube is fun, but how do you conveniently take that content “to go.”
And yet YouTube still hasn’t turned a profit. How do they even make money?
On volume?
The beauty of music is that, at times, you don’t even need to be in the same room to hear it.
I don’t know too many people who have the time to sit down and “watch” music videos anyway.
Music allows you to enjoy it and move around a room, even blast it out into your back-yard. Videos require you to be stationary.
Which is the more flexible format , audio or video? Which format does itunes sell more of?
iTunes wins, YouTube will fill a niche market, nothing more!!
MW: slowly – they will slowly get the idea!!
Who even gives a crap about music videos anymore? Rappers? Sorry, that’s not music. Music videos are dead in the water. In fact, even MTV realized that when they became an all-reality tv station. The 1980s are over.
I said this on <http://www.digitaljournal.com/news/?articleID=4882>the comment section</a> for Hogg’s story, so I will also say it here because I totally support YouTube and I think everyone missed the point of the media’s coverage of this story:
It’s really amazing how many people will adamantly stand by iTunes with such a stubborn disregard for potential industry changes. You can’t possibly be so in love with Apple that you are blind to EVERYTHING else around you.
I think the point of this news is that things can change, and YouTube is one of the few companies (add Microsoft to that list now with its upcoming Zune) that might shake the boat.
Of course, YouTube videos are horribly quality, but that doesn’t stop more than 100 MILLION people from watching them every day. In 10 days, that is more content than Apple sold on iTunes in three years.
YouTube knows it has some challenges and bridges to cross before it will be an Apple-sized giant, but it doesn’t mean it can’t happen. They are now working out how to make money off their business model and with a chance to find its place, it COULD kick the hell out of iTunes.