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2013-03-15 · letter vlog · Hank · 3:54 · watch on YouTube

Topic: Internet & YouTube (also: Nerdfighteria) · mode: Personal essay · tags: civic or action cta, community lore

Hank worries that YouTube is drifting toward the old media system of a few big, rich players and argues that viewers and creators should keep it open; he launches two creative contests, plans daily April vlogs and asks for help and discussion on a better funding model than advertising.

What is said

The parts of the video and what is said in each (★ — how much it matters to the video).

00:00:00 — Hank's worry about YouTube's future: a creative crisis, YouTube looking like the old system with fewer, bigger pots, 99% watching 1%; it's our job to prevent that

  • ★★ Hank says he has been thinking a lot about YouTube lately and may be having a little creative crisis, which he says is part of his normal cycle. (hedged) — 00:00:00 · YouTube
  • ★★ Hank notes YouTube and Vlogbrothers have always been changing; as YouTube becomes a bigger cultural force drawing attention from people "in big cities with suits on", he wonders what will happen to it. — 00:00:00 · YouTube, Vlogbrothers
  • ★★★ Hank says YouTube is starting to look like the old system: fewer pots with more money in each, instead of many pots with the money spread out. — 00:00:22 · YouTube
  • ★★★ Hank worries that only big content will be self-supporting, with 99% of people watching the same boring, TV-like 1% of content, no innovation, and rich people invested in keeping it that way. (speculative) — 00:00:36 · YouTube
  • ★★★ Without overstating viewers' power, Hank thinks it is "our job" to stop that happening; it won't be hard, but it won't happen on its own. (hedged) — 00:00:51 · Nerdfighteria

00:00:58 — A P4A perk lets a donor choose the topic; she asked for something the brothers care about; why online video matters to Hank (he runs VidCon)

  • ★★ Hank says one P4A perk was choosing a Vlogbrothers video topic; many such videos will be uploaded unlisted, but one donor asked for a video on something the brothers care about, so this is it. — 00:00:58 · Project for Awesome, Vlogbrothers
  • ★★ Hank says online video is very important to him (he runs VidCon) and thinks it is culturally important now and will be historically important. (hedged) — 00:01:12 · VidCon

00:01:27 — Doing things with the other side of the camera: the Hank's Face remix contest and the GIFMaster Award

  • ★ Hank wants people to be conscious of how we consume content, what we like, and what makes online video rewarding and different. — 00:01:27
  • ★★ Hank announces the Hank's Face remix contest: he has put the Hank's Face stems on a torrent for video remixers; the winner gets "prizes and glory", though mostly "who cares?". — 00:01:27
  • ★★ Hank announces the GIFMaster Award: viewers tag exceptional GIFs (any subject) 'GIF Master' and the brothers pick winners; there may be a physical prize, but nothing is guaranteed. — 00:01:56
  • ★★ Hank says he and John think animated GIFs are an underappreciated art form. (hedged) — 00:01:56 · John Green

00:02:26 — Vlogging every day in April; Hank wants to change the business model of content, not the content: advertising is the wrong model (the Brain Scoop example)

  • ★★ Hank says he misses vlogging more, will vlog every day in April, and encourages viewers to do the same. — 00:02:26

    “I'm gonna be vlogging every day in April”

  • ★★★ Hank says he wants to change the business of content, not the content itself, hoping a new model will lead to better content. — 00:02:26

  • ★★★ Hank objects that a project like the Brain Scoop, with 50,000 dedicated community members, still cannot pay for itself, because advertising is not the right model; he doesn't even like advertising. (hedged) — 00:02:40 · The Brain Scoop, online advertising

00:02:55 — Asks: designers and developers to help build a new model, domain names; let's talk about Nerdfighteria, discovery and better ways to fund online video; make new rules; sign-off

  • ★★ Hank asks designers and developers to apply via a description link to work with him on a new model, and asks for short, snappy domain names. — 00:03:01
  • ★★★ Hank invites Nerdfighteria to discuss, in the comments, Our Pants and the Nerdfighter subreddit, what they love, how to broaden, how content is discovered and whether there is a better way to fund it. — 00:03:13 · Nerdfighteria, Reddit
  • ★★ Hank is tired of businesspeople applying old rules to the new system: "Let's make some new rules." — 00:03:35

In the description and comments

  • ★★ Hank asks designers to apply by email with DESIGN in the subject line and examples of websites and user interfaces they have designed, preferring an emphasis on user experience and simplicity. — video description
  • ★★ Hank says the planned site will likely be built in Ruby and asks developers to tell him of their experience with APIs, payment handling and user databases. — video description
  • ★ Hank asks people with unused domain names to say which they have and what, hopefully discounted, prices they would accept. — video description

Threads in this video

Where the stories that moved here went next

Mentioned

Central: online advertising · YouTube

Also: GIF · GIFMaster Award · Hank's Face Remix Contest · Our Pants · Project for Awesome · Reddit · The Brain Scoop · VidCon

Later videos replying to this one

Part of an exchange of 4 videos, 2013-02-26 – 2013-03-20.