Australia Blog
News and rising stars from YouTube Australia
Happy New Year, Australia!
Sunday 30 December 2007
The New Year is the perfect reason to party, to make resolutions that are all-too-often forgotten, and to reflect on the year gone by. For us, the year was spliced into seemingly infinite intervals of video, many of them uploaded by Aussie and Kiwi content creators. Here are some highlights from that massive creative pool – these are the videos that made us laugh, think and/or rub our eyes in disbelief.
So from the entire YouTube Team, here's toasting to 2008!
Keep Smilin',
Damien E. aka YourTubeNEWS
YouTube AU/NZ
The Davos Question
Friday 21 December 2007
Every year, the world's top leaders meet in Davos, Switzerland, at the World Economic Forum to grapple with global problems. This year, we get to join them via video.
Here's how it works: First, upload your video to YouTube answering The Davos Question: "What one thing do countries, companies, or individuals need to do in 2008 to make the world a better place?" Then, submit your video to the Davos channel on YouTube.
You can watch and rank other YouTuber's ideas, and the highest-rated videos will be screened at the
World Economic Forum
in Davos on January 23-27. World leaders will see your videos and respond with their thoughts right here on YouTube.
So get cracking with your answers. By connecting with each other and our leaders, we can build support around ideas that may serve to make our world a better one in 2008.
Yours,
Steve aka
Citizentube
YouTube News & Politics
Site Update 12/12
Tuesday 18 December 2007
You may have noticed that we've made some updates to YouTube – we held off detailing the differences until they worked through the site and settled down, but we're ready to share the good news. This list is jam-packed with greatness and some improvements that many of you have been requesting. Enjoy!
NEW VIDEOS TAB
We've merged the Categories and
Video
browse pages into one new, easier-to-navigate home for video search. All the old search options can be found there, along with a new "Spotlight" section that enables you to scroll through featured videos. You'll find some design improvements on the
Channels
and
Community
tabs as well.
MOST ACTIVE & PREVIOUSLY POPULAR
The Videos tab now includes two new viewing options. Click
"Most Active Today"
and you'll see the current day's most buzz-worthy titles, which can then be filtered by category. Click
"Previously Popular"
to find the most-viewed videos from one week ago or one month ago.
CHANNEL RESULTS IN SEARCH
YouTube search results now include videos and channels, making it easier for you to access the content you're looking for. When you enter a search term, particularly relevant channels will be returned at the top of the results page.
RSS LINKS ON VIDEO BROWSE PAGES
To stay up to date on the searches you check frequently, subscribe to our video browse pages by clicking the
RSS link
located beneath the categories list.
PROFILE PICTURE
You can choose any image you want to represent your channel, instead of a video still. Just click the "Upload an image" option on your
Account
page.
SUBSCRIPTIONS UPDATE
Closed and suspended accounts will now be automatically removed from your subscriptions. If you were subscribed to several closed/suspended accounts, you will notice a one-time large drop in numbers as your list is updated.
COMMENTS VOTING OPTIONAL
Now you can choose whether or not you want to allow users to vote on comments made on your videos (thumbs-up/thumbs-down feature). You can select this under a new "Comment Voting" section for both
Upload
and
Edit Video
and sharing options.
Your local correspondent now presents another instalment of YouTube News! Take it away
pzottolo
...
Don't forget to comment here,
email
us or vlog and tell us what you think after poking around these new features.
Take it easy,
The YouTube Team
Partner Programme Expands
Monday 10 December 2007
Recognising YouTube users for their creativity and their role in building YouTube is of the utmost importance to our team. That's why earlier this year we launched a pilot of the
YouTube Partner Programme
, our way of enabling some of the most popular and prolific original content creators within the YouTube community to earn money from their videos. These partners decide which of their videos they would like to generate revenue on YouTube, and in turn, they receive a portion of the revenue generated from ads that run next to those videos. Even in this limited release, the programme has been an amazing success – already, millions of video views each week are earning revenue for our partners.
But we're just getting warmed up. Today we're announcing that we are expanding the YouTube Partner Programme. Now, anyone living in the United States or Canada can apply to become a partner at
www.youtube.com/partners
. (We're looking forward to rolling out the program to additional international markets soon.)
We feel it's important to reward our most dedicated community members: those who are regularly uploading original content to YouTube. In evaluating applications, we will focus on the users who have built a significant audience on YouTube (as measured by video views, subscribers, etc.) and who consistently comply with the
YouTube Terms of Use
.
We previewed this new application process to a select group of users who previously expressed interest in becoming partners -- over 100 of these users have already been added to the program, such as
tayzonday
,
hotforwords
,
apauledtv
, and
peteandbrian
.
As always, our goal is to provide a forum for people to connect, inform and inspire others across the globe. We hope that by expanding the YouTube Partner Programme, more content creators will reap rewards from their work and be able to produce even more of the original videos that have made YouTube so successful.
The YouTube Team
Todd Oldham Wants to See Your Holiday DIY Videos!
Saturday 8 December 2007
If you're a fan of anything handmade, you probably know and love design expert
Todd Oldham
. Now the Texas native wants to see what kind of innovation you're capable of. In the spirit of the holidays, he's asking you to upload video responses to this video, which challenges you to show him your best gift-making and home decoration skills.
Think of inventive uses for ordinary materials, something cool from unlikely objects, or crafts projects that can be given as gifts. Explore every verb in the DIY vocabulary: sew, drill, hammer, tape, recycle, plaster, paint, collage – and videotape it all. Todd will pick his favourite of your videos and fast-track them to us for featuring on the global home page.
Can't wait to see what you come up with!
Sadia H.
(aka
sublinx
) &
Todd
YouTube HowTo & Style
Send a Video Holiday Card!
Friday 7 December 2007
There are a lot of ways to say Happy Holidays: Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, Joyeux Noel, Feliz Navidad, Krismasi Njema (that's Swahili)…
No matter how you say it, a unique
"video card"
is the perfect way to spread some holiday cheer to friends, loved ones, chat buddies and even to your fellow 'Tubers. All you have to do is go
here
and upload a video or insert the URL of the YouTube video you'd like to send (or even select from our list of "holiday classics" created by other users). You'll also find a "Holiday Video Card" button on our watch pages, beneath the video description field. Once you know which video you'd like to dedicate to someone, pick a festive frame for it, write a personal message, enter email addresses and off it goes to in-boxes everywhere.
So go forth and spread holiday video joy!
Boas Festas (that's Portuguese),
The YuleTube Team
Project Direct: And The Winners Are...
Thursday 6 December 2007
Over the past week, many of you viewed and voted on the 20 films that Jason Reitman, the award-winning director of
Thank You For Smoking
and
Juno
, and a panel of industry experts selected as finalists in YouTube
Project Direct
.
Your votes have been counted and it’s time to announce the winners…
While we want to congratulate the talented filmmakers behind
Lacos (Ties)
,
Gone in a Flash
and
My Name is Lisa
on their achievement, we also want to congratulate and thank all of you who entered Project Direct and made YouTube’s inaugural short film competition such a success.
Be sure to check out the top 20 (and many more of the excellent contest submissions shortly!) in the dedicated
Project Direct gallery
!
Impressed and appreciative,
Sara P. aka
TheStoryBoard
YouTube Film
YouTubers Rock On in Melbourne!
Tuesday 4 December 2007
As I return from the Melbourne YouTube Gathering, I can't help but feel as if I've left many new mates behind. On a hot summer's day, YouTubers met, talked, danced, swatted away flies, wore novelty sized glasses, received free hugs
and
free ass kickings (how very Aussie!), then partied the night away. There were even a few 'Tubers who showed up from New Zealand, the U.S., the U.K. and the Netherlands.
For those who weren't able to make the trip, you can get a glimpse of what went down in the playlist below as well as in
EnglishKeenan
's photo gallery here
AsOne Melbourne Gallery
:
Next up, we hear from
philipnewmannz
that it's New Zealand's turn on January 19, 2008, at Te Papa in Wellington:
So mark your calendars! I know mine is…
Keep Smilin',
Damien E.
(aka YourTubeNEWS)
YouTube Australia
Project Direct: Go Vote!
Saturday 24 November 2007
In October, we announced
Project Direct
, YouTube's first film competition for aspiring directors.
The response was overwhelming. We were blown away by the number of exceptional films that were submitted – both from experienced film makers and first-timers.
After reviewing the entries, Jason Reitman, the award-winning director of
Thank You For Smoking
and the upcoming film
Juno
, and a panel of industry experts selected
20 finalists
.
Now it's up to you to decide which film maker is ready for the big time. Check out this video to see exactly what's at stake (well, almost exactly -- our first, second and third place winners also walk away with cash debit cards).
We hope you enjoy these entertaining and thought-provoking films as much as we have. And stay tuned to YouTube's
Film & Animation category
to see spotlights on some of the excellent entries that may not have made the top 20 but certainly deserve your attention.
Happy voting,
Sara P. aka
TheStoryBoard
YouTube Film
Where Will You Be on Dec. 1?
Friday 23 November 2007
If you're serious about your YouTube, you'll most likely be at Melbourne's Federation Square on December 1. Beginning at 11 a.m., YouTubers from all over Australia and New Zealand plan to come together to connect, share their stories and meet one another at the continent's first completely community organised get-together. Thumbs up to OzTubers
SeanBedlam
and
AngryAussie
for making this happen. If you have any questions about the day, click on over to the
AsOneMelbourne
channel and leave the guys a comment.
And if you plan on attending, don't forget your hat, sunscreen and a pair of sunglasses -- it's hot out there!
See ya in Melbourne,
Damien E.
(aka YourTubeNEWS)
YouTube Australia
New Video Category and Tag Choices
Wednesday 14 November 2007
Just a quick post to update you on some new choices available for "Video Category" and "Tags" on the video
uploading
and
editing
pages in your account.
SUGGESTED TAGS
You can choose from a set of new "suggested tags" when you upload or edit a video, in case you need some ideas for how to best represent your content. The more descriptive your tags, the easier it will be for folks interested in your videos to find them.
Just choose the best Category for your video, then click on any of the suggested tags to automatically add them to the "Tags" field.
EDITED CATEGORIES
A few changes made to existing video categories:
- Travel & Events (previously "Travel & Places")
- Howto & Style (was "Howto + DIY")
- Gadgets and Games (now part of "Entertainment")
NEW CATEGORIES
The following new categories are now available when you upload or edit your videos:
- Education
- Nonprofits & Activism
- Science & Technology
Since these categories are brand new, we need your help to populate them by uploading new videos or editing any of your current videos which are relevant to these topics. Once these categories fill up with all of your awesome content they'll be searchable on the
Videos tab
(a few of the above changes are already reflected on the Videos page).
More categories changes are on the way, so stay tuned!
The YouTube Team
G'day Oz 'Tubers!
Tuesday 13 November 2007
YouTube Australia finally has its own blog! This is where we'll be posting all the latest YouTube happenings, such as site updates, community news, details on any Aussie YouTube get-togethers (coming up:
Melbourne, December 1
) and much more. Feel free to also connect
with us directly: tell us what you're loving on the site (send vid links to
editor-au@youtube.com
) and whatever else is on your mind. And don't forget to use the Help Centre, which has answers to a lot of frequently asked questions as well as technical assistance.
We really want to make YouTube Australia a site that showcases a huge variety of Australian culture, interests and talent, and with the great online community we have here already we know it's going to be an exhilarating ride.
Have a good one,
Damien E.
(aka. YourTubeNEWS)
YouTube Australia
Multi-Video Upload Arrives
Thursday 8 November 2007
Have a hard drive full of new videos? With the YouTube Uploader, we've
now made it easier to get them all live on the site. This small piece
of software lets you upload multiple videos to YouTube at the same
time; each video can be up to 10 minutes in length and up to 1GB in
size. That's right, no more compressing to 100MB - we want your big
files!
Right now the YouTube Uploader is only available for Windows PCs but
we're cooking up a Mac version too. To get started, just go to the
installer webpage
and download the software. Then you'll be able to
access the
Multifile Upload page
and start your, well, uploading.
These videos will be available in
My Videos
after they have finished
processing. (Note: it may take 30 minutes or more for extremely large
files to appear on your page.) We link to the Multifile Upload page
from today's single file upload page so you can always find your way
back.
Happy Uploading!
The YouTube Team
Improvements to Video Flagging System
Tuesday 6 November 2007
Greetings from your friendly YouTube admins. We've been listening to
your feedback and we've been working hard to make the video flagging
system consistent, fair and less mysterious.
When users flag a video, it is reviewed by real-life humans at YouTube
who check to see if the video should be removed, age-restricted or
left alone.
Today we made some changes to the video flagging options:
* Clarified the top-level category names and added one for spam
* Added 17 sub-categories
* Added ability to enter additional information for some flags
* Some flagging reasons redirect to the appropriate Help Centre form
These changes are aimed at making it clear to users what should be
flagged, and allows users to provide us with more information so that
the less obvious violations can become more obvious to us. This will
help us be more efficient and consistent, which should hopefully
provide a better experience for everyone.
So let us know what you think of the new menus. In the meantime, we'll
keep working on adding abuse and safety content to the Community
Guidelines and the Help Centre so that the rules are more transparent.
Thanks,
The YouTube Team
Meet the Inaugural Community Council
Monday 5 November 2007
Today marks the first day of a new project aimed at better
understanding the needs and wants of our users. The "YouTube Community
Council" consists of a handful of volunteers (who will rotate every
six months) eager to share their opinions about the site and the
community with us on a consistent basis. They're kicking off their
tenure by visiting us in San Bruno over the next few days, giving
feedback directly to the team that makes it happen behind the scenes.
You can approach any of our councillors with your thoughts, gripes --
anything at all -- over the next six months, and they will fast-track
your feedback to us. Here's a quick video to introduce you to the
team…
…and their channels:
bgirl5
bradofarrell
sarrycrey
tlg847
visiblemode
As with anything new to YouTube, we are open to your feedback on this
endeavour, and don't forget to let us know if you're interested in
being on future editions of the Council.
Best,
The YouTube Team
Labels
accessibility
2
australia
3
birthday
2
captioning
1
channels
1
citizen reporting
1
comments
1
competition
6
cooking
1
creativity
6
creators
1
design
2
fashion
1
festival
1
fitness
1
frontrow
1
google+
1
homepage
1
howto
1
improvements
1
IPL
4
journalism
1
life in a day
3
live
3
livestreaming
2
mapmysummer
1
music
12
music moderator katy perry
1
musicians wanted
1
nextup
1
nonprofit
1
partner program
1
playlists
1
product update
4
promoted videos
1
ratings
1
safety
2
SBS sport cycling
1
science and technology
2
sessions
2
sport
2
summer
6
sydney
1
symphony
8
tropfest
1
updates
1
vidcon
1
vivid
1
vlogger
1
your film festival
1
YouTube
24
YouTube Australia Blog
255
YouTube insights
2
youtube music
2
YouTube Partners
2
YouTube Partnerships
2
Archive
2014
January
2013
May
March
2012
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
2011
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
2010
December
November
October
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
2009
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
2008
December
November
October
September
August
July
June
May
April
March
February
January
2007
December
Happy New Year, Australia!
The Davos Question
Site Update 12/12
Partner Programme Expands
Todd Oldham Wants to See Your Holiday DIY Videos!
Send a Video Holiday Card!
Project Direct: And The Winners Are...
YouTubers Rock On in Melbourne!
November
Project Direct: Go Vote!
Where Will You Be on Dec. 1?
New Video Category and Tag Choices
G'day Oz 'Tubers!
Multi-Video Upload Arrives
Improvements to Video Flagging System
Meet the Inaugural Community Council
Feed
YouTube
on
Follow @youtube
Follow
Learn more in the
YouTube Help Center
.
Follow