3 ms·
YouTube was bought mainly because Google Video was failing as a platform. About the only thing it ever offered over YouTube were longform lectures and presentat
by deaddodo 3y ago
YouTube was bought mainly because Google Video was failing as a platform. About the only thing it ever offered over YouTube were longform lectures and presentations. Combining the two platforms (e.g. allowing longer videos but using YouTube's social interface) just made YouTube better.
- silvestrov 3y agoIsn't there something about that seeking in movies was only possible in Google Video and not on (original) YouTube? So they ended up with the YouTube frontend and mostly Google Video backend?
- deaddodo 3y agoYes, modern YouTube's infrastructure inherits more from Google Video than classic YouTube, but the frontend descends from YouTube's (albeit, completely Ship of Theseus'd at this point).
- jwells89 3y agoI was a bit bummed when Google Video was shuttered. In some ways its simple to-the-point UX was nice compared to that of YouTube, which had become cluttered pretty early on. It was also sometimes a backup for when videos on YouTube got taken down.
- gowld 3y agoAnd because the owners of YouTube couldn't afford to run it, so it needed a wealthy investor.