The Seattle Times reports that Amazon "has launched a self-serve marketplace for video that lets pretty much anybody upload content and make money off it. It’s where YouTube meets Kindle Direct Publishing, the tech giant’s self-publishing service for books."
While it seems unlikely that Amazon will overtake YouTube in the short-term - or even the long-term - the story notes that the e-tailer likely is inspired by "YouTube and its endless buffet of content as a way to boost its own video library, a critical cog in the Prime membership money machine, with lots of new content it doesn’t have to produce or purchase."
The Times writes that the new Amazon Video Direct offering "highlights the company’s knack for breaking down most forms of gatekeeping that have traditionally ruled cultural industries, from books to movies. Amazon Studios, its movie production arm, already invites wannabe screenwriters to submit scripts and concepts online. KDP, the self-publishing service, has unleashed countless independent authors, some of whom have been wildly successful."
And the Wall Street Journal writes that "Amazon faces an uphill battle if it wants to create an able rival to Google’s YouTube, which has a decade-long head-start. More likely, Amazon aims to capture new users through the free video service and persuade them to buy Prime subscriptions, content for their devices or additional merchandise through its namesake site."
While it seems unlikely that Amazon will overtake YouTube in the short-term - or even the long-term - the story notes that the e-tailer likely is inspired by "YouTube and its endless buffet of content as a way to boost its own video library, a critical cog in the Prime membership money machine, with lots of new content it doesn’t have to produce or purchase."
The Times writes that the new Amazon Video Direct offering "highlights the company’s knack for breaking down most forms of gatekeeping that have traditionally ruled cultural industries, from books to movies. Amazon Studios, its movie production arm, already invites wannabe screenwriters to submit scripts and concepts online. KDP, the self-publishing service, has unleashed countless independent authors, some of whom have been wildly successful."
And the Wall Street Journal writes that "Amazon faces an uphill battle if it wants to create an able rival to Google’s YouTube, which has a decade-long head-start. More likely, Amazon aims to capture new users through the free video service and persuade them to buy Prime subscriptions, content for their devices or additional merchandise through its namesake site."
- KC's View:
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I love this. I've got a screenplay in my bottom drawer about forward buying, just-in-time deliveries and slotting allowances. It's a black comedy. Maybe I'll ship it off to Amazon...
