Youtube: A Company That Changed The Internet.

Youtube: A Company That Changed The Internet.

A Company that inspired me to change my life..…

Have you ever asked your parents how they felt when they first heard the word ‘Internet’?

Well I haven’t as well. But I definitely HAVE wondered how they must have felt when the World Wide Web (www) was launched in 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee. Back then, their version of the Internet was “read-only” meaning that they couldn’t necessarily post embarrassing baby pictures of you for their friends to see.

Obviously, things have changed A LOT since mom and dad first heard the word ‘internet’ and today, we enjoy a version of the Internet that is surreal. These days, our version of the Internet is 'Read-write’ and it allows us to actually interact with the cool stuff we see on the Web. Before TikTok, one of the pioneer apps for this new version of the Internet was YouTube.

YOUTUBE?

Yup, YouTube! And I can bet $1000 that you have heard that word before. YouTube is one of the companies that set out with a vision to contribute to change...the change of the Internet we have today. Safe to say that Sir Tim Berners-Lee walked so that the creators of YouTube could fly.

YouTube is an online video-sharing platform that allows users to create and upload video content which can be rated by an audience. People who watch the user-generated content on YouTube can rate its quality by liking/disliking, commenting and sharing the video outside the platform.

Although YouTube was not the first video hosting site, ShareYourWorld was the first, it was able to revolutionize the idea of video content and pave way for subsequent video-based companies like TikTok. ShareYourWorld, the first ever video platform, died out in 2001 after being founded in 1997 because the Internet at the time didn't have the technology to help it scale.

The dream of posting vlogs, informational videos or finding workouts online was almost lost until YouTube came along. Utilizing the newly expanded video transcoding technology and internet access bandwidth, YouTube was able to take ShareYourWorld’s concept much farther and even support video streaming.

Anyone can post any type of video content on YouTube (yup even your cat videos). Wanna know what’s even better?

If you create video content on YouTube, you earn the prestigious title of YouTuber. A YouTuber can build a community around their content and can actually earn a living by monetizing their content.

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HOW YOUTUBE HAS CHANGED THE INTERNET.

There's no doubt on how the Internet changed the way we live our lives. But do you think the internet would have had such a huge impact on us if we could only look at it?

I don’t think so. With the birth of the second iteration of the internet, people were now able to instantly communicate with each other. You could make friends with people in China with just the touch of a button. People could now search for anything in the world by just typing it into a Google search bar.

Speaking of Google, the world’s leading search engine acquired YouTube back in 2006 for $1.65 billion (an equivalent of $2.2 billion today). The acquisition gave YouTube a parent company, the best purchase Google has ever made if you ask me.

Gog and You.jfif

With Google’s influence on the internet and the world, YouTube was able to reach new heights. The platform became a haven of resources, education, information, and a vehicle to the future.

YouTube has had a crazy amount of influence on…

- Education: I learnt how to build a Notion template on YouTube. I know that might not be as stress-inducing as changing a car tyre, but YouTube offers an insane range of how-to videos. You can literally learn how to do anything on the platform, even flying an airplane (just check out Matt Guthmiller or the Emirates channel). Information was instantly made accessible to anyone with an internet connection. The amount of FREE information on YouTube is so atrocious that it earned a nickname from me “The Free University”.

- Entertainment: Anyone can be a celebrity with YouTube, literally. But don’t take my word for it, you can ask Justin Bieber, Chloe & Halle and many internet sensations that are stars today. However, YouTube's extensive resources isn't reserved for only upcoming musicians, YOU CAN BECOME AN INTERNET SENSATION AS WELL. Several channels have built a fan-base that includes millions of people both offline and online. Channels like MrBeasty, Ali Abdaal, Simplylearn, PewDiePie, Graham Stephan and many others became very popular by just putting out quality video content.

- Content Creation & Community Building: YouTube changed the game and the direction of content for the future generation. You don’t need to be a famous person to share or teach something. You could build a following just by sharing snippets of your life or just general knowledge on a topic you know well. Now you don’t have to go to a film school to make a video, all you need to have is a phone and some basic video editing skills. The popularity of YouTube allowed people to start exploring video editing and video creation as a monetizable skill. Not only that, YouTube proved that you don’t have to be a Kardashian to have some fans and build a community.

WHY YOUTUBE IS AN INSPIRATION TO ME - MY STORY.

Are you seriously asking me that question? You’re asking a girl with my socio-economic standing who is absolutely obsessed with education but can’t afford to travel to the best educational institutions in the world if she is obsessed with free video educational content???

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Of course, not all videos on I watch on YouTube are educational (I have been known to spend multiple hours watching vlogs) but I learn something new with YouTube everyday. When I was in my second year in college, I was having so much trouble keeping up with my biomedicine major. I started watching a lot of YouTube videos. But it wasn’t the Biochemistry videos from Professor Kent at Michigan State that changed the course of my GPA, it was a video from a normal student like me.

Anna would make “Study with me” videos that detailed her studying techniques. What made it even better was that she was a biomed senior so I could understand snippets of her notes and the reasoning behind her techniques. This was a game-changer for me because I was exposed to a plethora of information.

Although I reached a 4.0 GPA that academic year, the entire process sparked a fire that continued beyond the school year. I became obsessed with learning on YouTube. I gobbled up content from lifestyle, personal finance, real estate, skill learning and so much more.

Going down that YouTube rabbit hole set me light years apart from my peers. So much so that 2 months after I graduated from university, I landed an international internship with the same YouTuber that helped me study in my 2nd year. By then she had already built a successful company and had a thriving business.

Everything that has helped me in my short career as a Content Manager and Strategist, I learnt from YouTube (and in my internship of course :)

The first advice I give a newbie in any niche (even tech or Web3) is to watch a YouTube video. I believe that education can be life-changing and that YouTube is the vehicle for that can bring that change and what's even better....FOR FREE!

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CONCLUSION

What’s your favorite company? Why do you love it so much? What’s your favorite YouTube channel?

I don’t think I have a favorite because I appreciate a ton of creators.

This is the second issue in my contribution to the #4articles4weeks writeathon. You can read my first post here.

See you next week, I promise I won't be late!