The Internet has the power to transform lives, above all through the video-sharing site Youtube, reports Salonaz Sami We all became familiar with the name of Susan Boyle when this woman, previously unknown, took the British talent show "Britain's Got Talent" by storm earlier this year. Forty something and not an average wanna-be star in terms of appearance, Boyle turned out to have more than what it takes when it came to talent, which is what the show was all about. However, it wasn't the show that earned Boyle her newly found celebrity status. Instead, it was Youtube, the free video- sharing website. Boyle became well known worldwide not because she was a contestant on "Britain's Got Talent", but rather because she turned out to be a Youtube sensation. Boyle's experience demonstrated the power this site has managed to acquire over the four years since it started -- the power to turn ordinary people into celebrities overnight. Started by three ex-PayPal employees in February 2005 -- PayPal is an online payment service -- Youtube has since created such a buzz that it was bought by Internet giant Google for $1.65 billion in November 2006. Before the advent of Youtube, explains Ahmed Ghoneim, a technical director, there were few methods available for people who wanted to share online videos, and those sites that were available were neither free nor easy-to-use. "Youtube made it possible for anyone who could use a computer to make and upload a video that millions could watch within a few minutes," Ghoneim comments, "owing to the fact that it is both simple and very user-friendly." "Youtube also gives you the possibility of viewing videos off site," he adds, since each video on the site is accompanied by its own HTML, which can easily be cut and pasted to embed on other websites, such as Facebook or My Space. This capacity also increases the site's customer base, which now exceeds six million users. Youtube allows registered users to upload and share videos, mini-movies, TV clips and music videos, as well as amateur content like video blogs. And although most of the videos on Youtube are uploaded by individuals, some major media corporations, as well as famous artists, also secretly take advantage of the site. Although the site was originally started for individuals, and most of its content is still uploaded by them, at the same time it is fast becoming a major marketing tool for corporations. "Because of the wide range of topics Youtube covers the site has grown rapidly and managed to turn video-sharing into one of the most important parts of Internet culture," Ghoneim says. Youtube has thus become a kind of "'Speakers' Corner', where Internet users can upload, view and share clips in an ever-expanding archive-cum-bulletin board that both embodies and promotes democracy." Ghoneim describes the site as a unique fusion of blogs, social-networking sites and file-sharing networks. "Twenty years ago, you would turn on MTV to catch the latest music video. Today, you can just log on to Youtube." Many record companies are uploading their latest videos onto the site, meaning that users can click and watch them as many times as they want. However, the fact that Youtube is a free site using a simple interface has also brought problems, since various organisations, including the English Premier Football League, have charged it with copyright violation, claiming it has done too little to prevent the uploading of copyrighted material. In response, the site has introduced a system called Video ID, which checks uploaded videos against a database of copyrighted material to reduce the number of violations. However, according to one proud youtuber interviewed by Al-Ahram Weekly, Rania Rabie, a housewife, the site cannot be blamed for such violations. "When you upload a video onto the site you get a message that reads, "don't upload any TV shows, music videos, music concerts or commercials without permission unless they consist entirely of content you created yourself," she says. The site's official stand on the matter is therefore clear, even if some users have different ideas and still upload unauthorised material. Any copyright violations are "definitely the users' fault, not the site's," Rabie says. "With more than 70,000 videos uploaded everyday, it is impossible for Youtube to watch all of them before they are posted online," meaning that occasional lapses are inevitable. Another problem for which Youtube has been criticised is the presence of pornographic material on the site. Since any type of video can be uploaded, including those shot with camcorders and mobile phones, uploading such material has become easier and more widespread. However, this "has been the case with all past, present and future sites that provide these kind of services, not just Youtube," Rabie argues. Meanwhile, Youtube relies on its users to report videos they deem to be inappropriate or unauthorised. These are then reviewed by Youtube staff to determine whether they violate the site's rules or not, and, if so, to act promptly. Given the number of videos uploaded onto the site, Ghoneim says, this procedure "is by far the most effective way to make sure that the tiny minority of videos that break the rules come down quickly." In order to reduce the number of illegal files uploaded onto the site, Youtube has also recently limited the length of clips uploaded to 10 minutes and the file size to one GB. The site's phenomenal success has meant that at a time when it is hard to be amazed by anything that appears on the digital landscape, so extraordinary has it become, Youtube seems to be raising eyebrows even among experienced observers. "Judging by the level of popularity the site has achieved," Aida Salama, a professor of social studies, commented, "it seems that the future is only going to get better, even if other similar sites provide the same kind of service. Youtube provides a service for free, and it is very user-friendly. No one could ask for more." The site now has a collection of about 70 million videos from comedy items and music videos to political materials. It features the latest, and the strangest, videos from all over the world. People love to spend time on the Internet, and if a site has funny material people will go there to see it. The reason why one site becomes a hit with the public and another not, however, varies. One reason, in Salama's view, is isolation. "People want to break out of their anonymous lives and become somebody the whole world knows," she argues. "They are doing what they have been told to do, which is to broadcast themselves." Everyone, she adds, wants to be a star, and Youtube can provide the audience to make this happen. "Everyone wants to see what everyone else is seeing. It's that simple." As a result, ordinary people who put videos on Youtube can become celebrities, or in Internet- speak, "weblebrities", overnight. One such was Amber Lee Ettinger, "the Obama girl", who made a video about the current US president called "I got a crush on Obama", put it on Youtube, and became famous worldwide. Another weblebrity is 21-year-old Chris Crocker who made a video called "Leave Britney Alone" in which he is seen screaming at people who made fun of US singer Britney Spears's performance at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2007. Crocker's video received 20 million hits and was featured on many talk shows and news stations. "People can now watch themselves on Youtube, just as if they were on TV, which is also fun," Salama says. "And others get to watch them too." However, perhaps the real reason behind Youtube's success is that it has become a kind of international hub where people can express themselves without fear of judgement. "This is the real reason why Youtube has become so massive, going from being simply a video- sharing network to being something that connects people the world over," Salama comments. "We all have a desire to share a cultural context, and we all hunger to have things we can discuss." There is a need for community and a need for togetherness, and there is definitely a need for Youtube. The site has also gained recognition as a way for people to air their grievances in cases of alleged abuse of authority. Last month, for example, a video posted on Youtube by the independent Egyptian daily Al-Masry Al-Yom showed images of pigs being killed in cruel ways during the cull ordered as part of Egyptian measures against swine flu, and this caused waves of protest to break out across the country. Since it was put online the video has sparked horrified reactions, and the World Health Organisation has also issued a statement saying the drastic measures taken against Egypt's pigs were not scientifically justified. The fact that a video posted on Youtube has been able to spark such reactions shows just how powerful the site has become. Youtube facts and figures The first Youtube video was uploaded on 23 April 2005. Called "Me at the Zoo", it shows one of the three founders of the company at San Diego Zoo in the United States. The video can still be viewed on the site. In July 2006, the company announced that more than 65,000 new videos were being uploaded everyday, and that the site was receiving 100 million video views per day. Youtube is ranked as the third most-visited site on the Internet behind Yahoo and Google. According to data published by the market research company comScore, Youtube is now the dominant provider of online video in the United States, with a market share of around 43 per cent and more than six billion videos viewed by January 2009. It is estimated that 20 hours of new videos are uploaded to the site every minute. In 2007, the site consumed as much bandwidth as the entire Internet did in 2000. An article published in Forbes magazine in June 2008 projected 2008 revenues for the site to reach $200 million. In November 2008, Youtube reached an agreement with the American media companies MGM, Lions Gate Entertainment and CBS allowing them to post full-length films and TV shows on the site accompanied by advertising. Youtube for TV was launched last January for set-top boxes and TV-based media devices with Web browsers, and Youtube XL was introduced in June, which has a simplified interface designed for viewing on a standard television screen. In February 2008, Pakistan blocked Youtube due to the presence of what it said was offensive material towards Islam on the site, including cartoons of the Prophet Mohamed that were published in a Danish newspaper some years ago. This led to what became a near global blackout of the site for around two hours, as the Pakistani block was inadvertently transferred to other countries. In 2008, the Jordanian Queen Rania was honoured by Youtube with its first Visionary Award for her efforts to combat stereotypes and misconceptions associated with Arabs and Muslims. Queen Rania created her own channel on the site in March 2008 in order to start what she called an "unscripted, unedited and unfiltered" conversation on the subject. Thus far, her channel has had over three million visitors.
