Google overhauling YouTube with channels, pro content

By Molly McHugh April 6, 2011

It’s been obvious for awhile now that Google has big plans for YouTube. It’s been inching closer and closer toward premium content and is even rumored to be considering designating some serious money toward celebrity–branded channels. And if all that weren’t enough, a new report from the Wall Street Journal says that Google is busy with a “major site overhaul to organize [YouTube’s] content around ‘channels.’”

As Internet TV makes its way into more living rooms, Google has found itself perfectly poised to compete with the likes of Amazon, Hulu, and Netflix for a piece of the streaming content pie. Of course, this will only be possible if it carefully, judiciously makes the transition from the mess of home movies, music videos, and cult content it currently supplies.

Related Videos

It’s about to begin. The report says that YouTube will now sport categorized channels (“such as arts and sports”), and that rumored premium-grade content is on its way. “YouTube is looking to introduce 20 or so ‘premium channels’ that would feature five to 10 hours of professionally-produced original programming a week,” an insider told WSJ. These changes are slated to roll in by the end of the year, and Google is looking for new recruits to work on the project. And Google isn’t simply working on adding organization to YouTube; meetings with reputable Hollywood talent firms would suggest it’s serious about nabbing some famous personnel, be those behind or in front of the camera.

YouTube certainly is enough of a household name to command at least some attention, and if it plans to keep and grow its user base and make the type of money it wants to off advertising, this is a natural step. With such massive change, there’s always the possibility of isolating passionate YouTubers who have been there since its start, but it’s probably worth it for Google to further break into our living rooms.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Computing

What is Wi-Fi 7: Everything you need to know about 802.11be

Checking a Wi-Fi router and internet connection on a phone.

Wi-Fi 7 is the latest evolution in the 802.11 IEEE standard of wireless networking, and it's the direct sequel to Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E. It's faster, offers improved support for a greater number of simultaneous connections, and will be more adaptable, to better maintain low-latency connections. It will be an excellent solution for streaming ultra-high-definition video to multiple devices simultaneously, and may find use in future wireless virtual reality and augmented reality headsets.

There aren't many Wi-Fi 7 devices or routers available just yet, but a soft launch has already begun in China, and that rollout will gather sped in the coming years. To get you ready for the next generation of Wi-Fi technology, here's everything you need to know about Wi-Fi 7.

Computing

Microsoft is bringing ChatGPT to your browser, and you can test it out right now

Microsoft's redesigned Bing search engine.

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella confirmed in a private briefing with the press that a ChatGPT-powered version of the Edge browser and Bing search engine is available now. The overhauled search and web browsing experience is designed for natural-language questions, replacing critical aspects of the browser with AI tools.

That might sound familiar. Google and other search engines have been leveraging AI for several years to compile search results, but Microsoft's take is different. It's "your AI copilot for the web," offering up new search, answer, chat, and create functions.

Computing

Microsoft Word vs. Google Docs

A person using a laptop that displays various Microsoft Office apps.

For the last few decades, Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard for word processors across the working world. That's finally starting to shift, and it looks like one of Google's productivity apps is the heir apparent. The company's Google Docs solution (or to be specific, the integrated word processor) is cross-platform and interoperable, automatically syncs, is easily shareable, and perhaps best of all, is free.

However, Google Docs still has a long way to go before it can match all of Word's features -- Microsoft has been developing its word processor for over 30 years, after all. Will Google Docs' low barrier to entry and cross-platform functionality win out? Let's break down each word processor in terms of features and capabilities to help you determine which is best for your needs.
How does each word processing program compare?
To put it lightly, Microsoft Word has an incredible advantage over Google Docs in terms of raw technical capability. From relatively humble beginnings in the 1980s, Microsoft has added new tools and options in each successive version. Most of the essential editing tools are available in Google Docs, but users who are used to Word will find it limited.