I like to look at our web statistics on a regular basis, and see what kind of content is popular with our audience. Apart from our very widely promoted White papers by Jason Romney, the most popular content item on the CSB site is a video of academic Toby Miller discussing what Hollywood might be like in 2010.
It’s a fun topic that was presented as part of our Lunchtime encounters series in 2006. But is it the topic that makes it so popular? Or is it the format? Is watching someone speak and hearing them talk more powerful a motivating factor than only hearing them? The mp3 version was less popular than the video, suggesting this may be the case, despite the video being a much larger file to download.
The value of online video can be measured by the purchase of YouTube by Google, who have now announced they will end their own video services and merge their content into YouTube. Tubers will now also be able to share in the advertising revenue generated by hits on their videos.
The research on video is compelling. A December 2006 report (PDF) suggests that the demand for video is insatiable. From my own tiny study, I tend to agree. Content is still important, and context is king. People want opinion and analysis, not just news. So, to give you what you want, here is Toby Miller ready to watch, or you can go here to choose various downloads.
