If you’re like me, it’s pretty hard to separate Christmas from video games. Many of my best holiday memories revolve around video games – like the time my parents tricked me into thinking they didn’t get me an N64, or that time I played Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for 76 hours straight.
Anyway, YouTube user coasterbp has melded Christmas and video games in a pretty awesome way – with the now-popular light show/music sync performance. But instead of using a popular Christmas tune as the musical accompaniment or even a top 40 radio hit, coasterbp used the theme song from one of the year’s most popular games.
I present the Battlefield 3 theme song light show:
No, I’m not talking about Christmas greetings from ABC’s now-defunct Wide World of Sports, but that would be pretty cool, as well. Unfortunately, there aren’t any fitting such a category on YouTube, although, there are quite a few WWoS intro videos. What I’m referring to are the yearly collaborations from various sports entities, teams, and franchises, that wish fans the happiest of holidays. Normally, these video greetings are done in an awkward manner, but I don’t think I’d want it any other way.
This year’s versions of various Christmas greetings do not disappoint, either. We have some offerings from the world of college basketball, the EPL, and some students/fans of college basketball as well. If these don’t get you in the Christmas spirit, check your heart for coal deposits.
First off, we have the lovely ladies from the Gonzaga basketball team. I hope you guys shoot better than you sing (we kid because we care):
Next up we have fans from Abilene Christian University taking the basketball floor to bring us some wobbling Christmas joy:
I’m just glad they didn’t “Dougie.”
Next up, is an amazing video from the Arsenal soccer club. If only all Christmas videos could be this awesomely awkward:
This next video features the head basketball coach of the Providence Friars, Ed Cooley, playing the role of Father Christmas. It’s sweet, innocent and does a great job of relaying the appropriate cheer:
Here’s some more college basketball Christmas cheer, featuring the Illinois Fighting Illini and the Cal Bears:
And that, folks, is how we roll when it comes to Christmas. Keep in mind that this is festive holiday, and making such fantastic content like the above videos is a fantastic way to embrace the season.
Keeping in line with Google’s Let it snow feature where your results page fogs up when you search the phrase, YouTube now has a little snow button on some of its videos that allows you to populate them with accumulating snowflakes.
I’ve searched around YouTube, and found that the snow button is only available on some videos. I stumbled across it while viewing the Happy Holidays video from the Android team.
The button appears on the bottom right-hand side of the video box. When you press it, varied snowflakes begin to fall from the top of the video. If you pause a video, the snowflakes keep falling and will accumulate on the bottom. You can also use your mouse to disrupt the snowflakes.
Check it out on this video of a frog playing on a touchscreen:
I hope this cool little feature sticks around for awhile. If the snow button begins to appear on more videos, I can only imagine the hilarious juxtaposition of making it snow while Mr. Blonde cuts that cop’s ear off in Reservoir Dogs.
The Google Nexus YouTube account has posted a fun little video of the entire Android team wishing all of us Happy Holidays. In the video, you’ll see Santa, Google HQ, and plenty of Android devices.
As you would expect, the greeting is pretty heavily decked out with Android gear. A healthy mix of figurines, tablets and smartphones give the impression that Santa is definitely an Android fan:
By the last shot of the video, you see that the Android team is pretty proud of their new Galaxy Nexus, which runs Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. The device is used to take a panoramic shot that serves as the “Christmas card” of the Android community.
The Android team is not alone is using Santa in a holiday campaign. The folks over at Apple would thoroughly reject the notion that Santa is anything but an iPhone user:
By now, you’ve probably seen, or at least heard about the FedEx delivery driver who was caught on tape demonstrating some incredibly effective package delivery techniques. If not, familiarize yourself:
Needless to say, Mister Throw Packages became a viral hit after his actions were uploaded — on December 19, 2011; it now has over 4.5 million views — which, in turn, caused his employers to take respond in a swift manner. And so, FedEx did what most companies who have a sense of tech savvy on their side do: Use the Internet to convey their message. What normally might have been done with a paid-for commercial block can now be done through the power of YouTube. Not only does this take on a grassroots feel of its own, there’s no doubt it cuts down on productions costs.
What do you think costs more? A public service announcement on YouTube, or unique (and often funny) ad content to be consumed by the masses, complete with actors who want to be paid for their time? The answer is pretty obvious, especially once you see FedEx’s thoughtful response, one that undoubtedly was cheaper to make. There’s nothing wrong with a pragmatic approach, especially if the message is getting through:
Swift, decisive action, complete with a straight-forward, capitulation-filled approach.
It should be noted the FedEx apology has not received near the amount of views as the package-tossing video did, which isn’t surprising. Controversy sells, especially when the mainstream media picks up on it, and the offending video was seen on local news channels across the nation. It’s actually unfortunate these same outlets won’t give the apology the same kind of airplay, but then again, being nice doesn’t sell quite as well.
It should also be noted the fate of the delivery driver is unknown. In the apology, Matthew Thornton III, FedEx Express Senior VP, indicates the driver is no longer working with customers, but the implication is being made that he’s still employed with FedEx. Maybe they have him locked in the company pillory as punishment.
While people still buy their games like their hotcakes, when it comes to public opinion, EA’s reputation isn’t the best or the brightest. As long as that doesn’t disrupt their bottom line, all’s well that ends well, I suppose.
This next item, however, pretty much defies all description. Going by the title “An EA Christmas Carol,” the upcoming video is what one publication intimates as EA’s attempt to ruin Christmas. Normally, I try to find a middle ground when it comes to hyperbolic reactions, but in this case, the Destructoid post might be onto something. Take a look for yourself:
I’ve noticed words have been failing me lately, and it’s all due to all the crazy Christmas content that’s popping up all over the web. Thanks for the contribution, EA. If the YouTube reaction is anything to go by, this and the Destructoid article aren’t the only ones perplexed by EA’s Christmas video.
Currently, there are 84 likes and 222 dislikes.
Obviously, this little video wasn’t intended for the television audience, with words and phrases like “goddamn cab,” “testicles,” and “my wonderland is shat.” In fact, much like the everybody’s else reaction, I’m not exactly sure what kind of consumer this targets. The singers in the video are — seemingly — making fun of crappy gamers, because, I guess, that’s the way to attract more customers? By making fun of those who are less “l337” than the professional gaming crowd?
In the video’s description, it says “And for those of you who like a challenge, listen closely to the carol. Do any of the lines sound familiar?” indicating the lyrics come from various EA games, meaning the attack on bad gamers isn’t exactly accurate, even though it comes across that way. Are any of you out there familiar enough with EA’s stable of games to identify which games are being quoted?
Clearly, if it’s in the game, it’s in the Christmas Carol.
Remember the “Crush on Obama” song? Sure, it made the hottie who starred in the video a popular item, but only because of her attractiveness. The creator of the song that catapulted “Obama Girl” to fame, Leah Kauffman, is back again with “Firewall,” and this time, she’s not concerned about Presidential election themes.
No, this time, Kauffman’s aim is against SOPA, much like every other user-generated content creator who uses the Internet as conduit for their creativity. As pointed out by Boing Boing, in this particular performance, Kauffman isn’t relying on eye candy to convey her message, instead, she’s letting her lyrics do the talking, while performing the song herself. While she may not be on the same eye candy level as the Obama Girl lip-synching cupcake, she’s certainly easy enough on the eyes to make her visual-medium message an enjoyable one.
Plus, the song is awfully catchy, too:
Kauffman was kind enough to transcribe the lyrics on the video’s YouTube page, and even though she’s singing with an innocent, poppy style, the message is not lost:
From the first time I signed onto AOL
I’d fall underneath your dial-up spell
You do something to me, want to be with you always
I hoped that we would never see the day
SOPA would try to change you, or take you away
All the things you’ve shown me, you make me feel complete
Tumblr, Facebook, Vimeo, and Twitter
Youtube LolCatz, Ebay, and Flickr
Don’t put up a firewall when we could have it all
Say no to protect IP
You won’t stop piracy
Don’t put up a firewall
Don’t take away my Tumblr
You know I want to stop infringing sites
But Congress please don’t make me give up my rights
to friend reblog and follow
upload tweet and post
All this in the name of property
at the expense of the tech community
you’re threatening our cybersecurity
and free speech
Zynga, Mozilla, Google, and Yahoo!
The coders, the bloggers, the start-ups
all get screwed
Don’t put up a firewall when we could have it all
Say no to protect IP
You won’t stop piracy
What is this China?
Don’t treat me like a rogue site it hurts
Don’t erase me from your search
someone could spend more time in jail than conrad murray
for illegally downloading a michael jackson song!
Much like Dan Bull’s impressive rap, the message is in lyrics and if you’re worried about a lack of Obama Girl in this video, you’re missing the point.
On a final note, wouldn’t be awesome if both Kauffman and Bull bum rushed the next set of hearings, singing their anti-SOPA anthems, just so the supporters can get a better idea of where the public stands on this matter, as if that has any bearing.
Peter Jackson is in the process of creating his revisitation to Middle Earth movies, in this case, a two-part movie concerning the telling of The Hobbit. To generate the appropriate buzz, even though the movie doesn’t hit the big screen until next December, the obvious move is to release a well-cut trailer that captures the imagination of Tolkien fans everywhere, while giving them a glimpse of what’s to come.
And so, we have the new Hobbit trailer. As indicated, the movie will be broken into two parts, and the first installment uses the “An Unexpected Journey” as its tagline, pretty much guaranteeing the movie will focus on the first half of the much-loved book. For those who haven’t seen it yet, but are wondering if Jackson would keep some of the Tolkien themes that are present in the book, yes, there is singing:
Since it was posted on December 20th — the YouTube version was apparently first revealed at the movie’s Facebook page — the video has already garnered over 1.1 million views, if that gives you any indication about the anticipation concerning Peter Jackson’s return trip to Middle Earth. For those completely in the dark about Hobbits and J.R.R. Tolkien, the YouTube page features the following description:
“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakensheild. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever … Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths ofguile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.
The thing about prequels is, the cast of the original films have gotten older. To address this, Jackson cast new actors to play Bilbo Baggins, but Gandalf is still being played by Ian McKellen, but in The Hobbit, he’s appearing as Gandalf the Grey, allowing him to have an older, more haggard appearance as opposed to his turn as Gandalf the White in the final two Lord of the Rings movies.
As for the reaction, if Twitter is anything to go by, the thumbs are up:
@erinmorgenstern erin morgensternAlso, I didn’t want to care about The Hobbit and then the trailer had to go and be all awesome, sigh.1 hour ago via web · powered by @socialditto
@Mike_Donachie Mike_DonachieRose and I just saw the trailer for The Hobbit. She has made me promise to read her the book over the holidays. Gollum terrified her nicely.4 minutes ago via TweetDeck · powered by @socialditto
It looks like Jackson has another Middle Earth blockbuster on his hands.
It shouldn’t come as any surprise, but the top TV ad of the year, according to Nielsen, happens to be the same ad as YouTube’s top ad of the year. That would, of course, be Volkswagen’s The Force, featuring the little kid dressed ad Darth Vader. In fact, that video even made YouTube’s top ten videos period.
1. VW – The Force
2. T-Mobile – Royal Wedding
3. Chrysler – Imported From Detroit
4. DC Shoes – Ken Block’s Gymkhana Four: The Hollywood Megamercial
5. SmartWater – Jennifer Aniston goes viral
6. Team Hot Wheels – The Yellow Driver’s World Record Jump
7. Old Spice – Scent Vacation
8. Apple – Introducing Siri on iPhone 4S
9. Samsung – Unleash Your Fingers
10. Adidas D Rose: adiZero Rose 2 — The Bull
The lesson for advertisers appears to be: use Star Wars for inspiration in your campaigns. Of course, you’ll want to do that without getting sued.
Earlier, Josh detailed the most-watched YouTube videos of 2011, and while that list is indeed eye-opening, especially in regards to the music tastes of YouTube viewers, it was missing something crucial: A video featuring the best fails of 2011.
While the video hasn’t acquired enough views to make the year-end list, if there was a “heat” meter for the video’s popularity, it would be hovering around the “smoking hot” section. Consider this, the video we’re about to watch was posted on December 18th, which was two days ago as of this article. In the two short days since it was uploaded, the Best Falls of 2011 video already has over 1 million views and well over 10,000 likes.
If YouTube had a “highest gaining stocks” ticker, this video would certainly be listed. With that in mind, let’s all enjoy 12-plus minutes of the best of people busting their asses, because nothing says humor like laughing at the misfortune of others:
Now that’s a whole heaping of fail for you. Personally, I’m awfully fond of the skateboarders who wipe each other out, all except for the guy in the yellow shirt who raises his arms in victory after realizing the disaster he just avoided.
Look for it around the 34 second mark, but don’t stop there. Be sure and stay for the duration, and yes, the woman falling into the mall fountain while she’s texting definitely makes an appearance.
The lesson this video offers, at least to me, is clear: Stay the hell away from lamp posts, especially if you have no business attempting Parkour moves.
In what could provide the most enjoyable year-in-review experience around, YouTube has just announced their Rewind 2011, a trip down memory lane, feature everyone’s favorite (and possibly least-favorite) videos of the year.
You could say that it was a pretty big year for YouTube. In a blog post, they announced over 1 trillion (1,000,000,000,000 for effect) playbacks on the site as a whole. That’s around 140 playbacks for every person on planet Earth.
“To compile these lists, we looked at global view counts of popular videos uploaded throughout this year, and, in some instances, we aggregated views across multiple versions of the same video.”
Here’s what they came up with, the top ten videos of the year (in order)
1. Rebecca Black- “Friday”
2. Ultimate Dog Tease
3. Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton)
4. Talking Twin Babies (pt. 2)
5. Nyan Cat
6. Look At Me Now – Cover by @KarminMusic
7. The Creep (feat. Nicki Minaj & John Waters) (Hulu embed)
8. Maria Aragon – Born This Way Cover
9. The Force – Volkswagen Commercial
10. Cat mom hugs her baby kitten
Here’s their list for most viewed videos from major record labels:
Jennifer Lopez – On The Floor ft. Pitbull
LMFAO – Party Rock Anthem ft. Lauren Bennett, GoonRock
Bruno Mars – The Lazy Song [Official Video]
Nicki Minaj – Super Bass
Pitbull – Give Me Everything ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack, Nayer
Pitbull – Rain Over Me ft. Marc Anthony
Jessie J – Price Tag ft. B.o.B.
LMFAO – Sexy and I Know It
Katy Perry – E.T. ft. Kanye West
Katy Perry – Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)
Over at the blog post, YouTube also links to playlists where you can find the most popular videos in specific categories like sports, travel, food, science and fashion.
For instance, here’s the most watched video of the year in the “sports” category:
The YouTube Rewind page features more year-end lists like “fastest rising search terms” organized by month, and a place to vote for the best videos of the year.
What was your favorite YouTube video of 2011? Let us know in the comments.
If this doesn’t get you in the mood for Christmas, you’re a bigger Scrooge than the person the meaning behind the name came from. You’re an even bigger Grinch than Dr. Seuss’ and there’s little chance your heart will grow three sizes, unless the “dead tomato squashed with moldy purple spots” it’s comprised of was getting ready to explode.
What we have here is yet another exercise on how to make great user-generated content that fits the general theme of the public, and since we’re less than a week away from Christmas Day, this video is a fantastic example of fitting web content. In fact, I’d much rather watch something like this instead of Best Buy’s mean spirited “Game on, Santa” commercials. If they would create something like this, instead of “daddy don’t want no cologne” commercials, it might have a much more positive impact.
Or maybe I just like YouTube videos of puppies tearing through presents.
Best Buy, in particular, is running a terribly callous series of commercials called “Game On, Santa,” in which obsessed female shoppers purchase the gifts that their loved ones really want at Best Buy and then wait up on Christmas Eve to accost Santa Claus in their living rooms and gloat that they’ve already beat him to the punch. In your face, you outdated fat man with your outdated presents! [Emphasis mine]
Would the WaPo’s reaction be anywhere near as harsh if Best Buy dumped those ads and used puppies ripping into wrapped mobile devices instead? Of course not.
In other news, for all you web entrepreneurs out there who are wondering about effective methods to advertise your web site’s services in time for the Holidays, use the video as a step-by-step tutorial, adding whatever branding materials you deem necessary. Just don’t overdo with the brand placement.
It’s funny, these companies spend millions of dollars on their Holiday season ad campaigns when something much more simple like puppies and Christmas trees is much more effective, not to mention, probably a lot cheaper. At least the production costs.
I wrote a post earlier today about YouTube’s guide to DIY gifts this Christmas season and, while those ideas are okay, YouTube seems to have dropped the ball with their list of helpful hints because they left out one amazing suggestion: a rainbow sponge.
Dee Gruening, sponge-enthusiast and lover of 80’s-style MC Hammer-pants patterns, is a purveyor of rubber stamps and rainbow sponges that can be used to make wavy color patterns on anything. Paper, wood, faces – you name it. If it’s got a surface, it’s asking for some Dee-treatment. In fact, Gruening humbly admits that she “was one of the first to establish rubber stamping as a rage.” Gruening is also the reigning Stampstress Supreme at her business, Posh Impressions, where you can acquire all of the means necessary to indulge your stamping stampede (I can’t believe I just tried that joke).
Gruening is pretty enthusiastic about her craft, especially when it comes time to use some rainbow sponges to show that smug white paper who’s the color boss. From her website,
Dense compressed sponges provide application of colors and effects like no other for backgrounds, tiles and original art designs. Use is limited only by one’s imagination as it is the tool for the adventuresome and artful. Delightfully different from any other stamping, scrapbooking or paper arts product. Inkabilities inks work well not only on paper, but are wonderful to provide enhanced colors for polymer clay, Suze’s melting pot creations and most surfaces.
In other words, you have no excuse to not create mind-bending art that will undoubtedly rend any recipient of this gift to a wad of gleeful tears. How does the sponge work, you ask? Gruening is more than delighted to introduce you to this craft of arcana. So now, without further ado, I present to you Dee Gruening’s whole video devoted to the Rainbow Sponge.
I have to say, listening to Gruening squeal and moan and effuse about wiggling while she rasps about what that rainbow sponge is doing for her, I don’t think I’ve ever been that excited or felt that great about anything in my life (and I feel like I’ve had some pretty awesome experiences, too). Like, I don’t have a rich enough vocabulary to explain to you what’s happening in my brain right now; my gears fly off of their pinions whenever I hear her exclaim, “Of course you can go straight,” and then creates a swirl of rainbows. And at 1:14, I halfway expect her to start hissing about “the preshuzzz” with her next wiggle.
As a post-script to this article – because how can one be expected to dutifully sum up this phenomenon – I really think D-Wiggles should be my rap name.
There’s not that many more shopping days till Christmas so it’s time to get cracking on ideas for your friends, fiends, and family. If you suffer from Christmas-time agoraphobia (who wouldn’t?), conscientiously choose not to spend money on the world’s most compulsive ritual of consumerism, or even if you’re simply living on a tight budget these days there’s always the creative and frugal option of making gifts for your recipients. Making gifts, however, isn’t always the easiest option as you have to 1) have a creative idea of what to make for people and 2) have talent. Heavy emphasis on the second requirement.
If you’re short on either of those two gift-making requisites, YouTube has come to your aid. They’ve compiled a series of Do-It-Yourself videos that detail instructions on how to make a few homely gifts such as coasters, an envelope clutch (because nothing says “I didn’t try this year” like an envelope clutch) and peppermint bath salts.
They’ve also included a guide to wrapping gifts in socks (because nothing says “I didn’t try this year” like wrapping gifts in your dirty old socks).
On their Twitter account, YouTub offered up a video that details how to make a DIY Geometric Necklace, which is a gift that makes it look like you tried and are talented.
Most likely, everybody will feign excitement and adoration when they realize that you gave them one of these gifts. Hopefully you’re a deft knitter or a baking wizard and can rely on those skills to produce quality DIY gifts for those unfortunate enough to be on your shopping list this year. For all parties involved, this will make it much easier to summon authentic smiles of gratitude and pride when your gift is presented.
Failing all of this, be thankful there is always Family Dollar.
Has anybody out there had much success in making well-received gifts for people? Has anybody received DIY gifts that you actually liked? What was it? Share your ideas below.
This morning we brought you a story concerning the conflict between Megaupload and Universal Music Group. Last week Megaupload, which has been the target of the RIAA’s and MPAA’s ire for its perceived role in piracy, posted a video in which a number of big-name stars sang about their support for Megaupload. UMG flagged the video via YouTube’s automated content management system. When Megaupload protested and re-posted the video, UMG removed it again.
Challenged to provide proof their right to have the video removed, UMG sent YouTube’s legal department a letter in which they effectively claimed that a special agreement with YouTube meant that they did not need to have a specific copyright claim on a video’s content in order to have it removed via the content management system.
In the course of preparing this morning’s story I sent requests for comment to YouTube, and to Kelly Klaus, the lawyer for UMG who sent the letter. While no response from Mr. Klaus has been forthcoming, I just received a response from a YouTube spokesperson, who had this to say:
Our partners do not have the right to take down videos from YT unless they own the rights to them or they are live performances controlled through exclusive agreements with their artists, which is why we reinstated it.
There you have it. UMG did not have any exclusive agreement with YouTube that would allow them to remove the video.
Earlier in the week we brought you news of a growing conflict between Megaupload and Universal Music Group. Late last week Megaupload posted a video that featured a wide array of celebrities singing the praises of the online data locker service. Over the weekend, however, UMG used YouTube’s automated system for reporting copyright infringement to have the video, which was produced and owned entirely by Megaupload, taken down. When Megaupload protested and re-posted the video, UMG again had it taken down. Megaupload responded by suing UMG.
Today, court documents have surfaced showing UMG’s defense of its actions. Early this week YouTube’s legal director, Lance Kavanaugh, apparently sent UMG a letter demanding that the company either provide evidence of its ownership of the video or forfeit its copyright claim. UMG’s response, written by Kelly M. Klaus of Munger, Tolles & Olson, claims first of all that UMG took YouTube’s “statements to be self-effectuating and decided to take no further action.” In other words, when presented with an ultimatum to either prove or forfeit its copyright claim, UMG chose to forfeit its claim by not responding. YouTube apparently sent a follow-up letter, reiterating its request, to which UMG responded with this letter. What we have here, then, is a tacit admittance of what everybody already knew: UMG does not own the Megaupload video, and has no copyright claim to the video.
Most interesting, however, is UMG’s second line of defense. Mr. Klaus’s letter takes exception to the demand for copyright proof from YouTube. The paragraph in question is too good to quote piecemeal:
Second, your letter could be read to suggest that UMG’s rights to use the YouTube “Content Management System” with respect to certain user-posted videos are limited to instances in which UMG asserts a claim that a user-posted video contains material that infringes a UMG copyright. As you know, UMG’s rights in this regard are not limited to copyright infringement, as set forth more completely in the March 31, 2009 Video License Agreement for UGC Video Service providers, including without limitation in Paragraphs 1(b) and 1(g) thereof.
So, let’s break that down a little. Wading through the legalese, it looks as though UMG is citing this Video License Agreement to claim that it has the right to take down video content that it doesn’t own. Exactly what grounds UMG thinks it does need, however, remain unclear. What does seem clear is UMG’s only possible reason to remove the Megaupload video is simply that they don’t like it. So, in effect, UMG is claiming that this nebulous agreement with YouTube allows it to remove YouTube content for any reason at all.
In preparing this story I sent requests for comment both to Mr. Klaus and to YouTube. As yet there has been no response from either. Look for updates later in the morning if they respond.
The most useful appliances and electronics are those that can consolidate multiple uses. Take XBox, where you can watch Netflix and play video games. Toaster ovens can cook your dinner or heat up yesterday’s leftovers. Some responsibilities, though, may seem impossible to combine but this is a funny world and ’tis the season of miracles.
Take YouTube user ThatSpecialGuy. He (presumably) likes to play video games but he also has a pet Bearded Dragon Lizard that he must attend to, as well. Normally, these two responsibilities might not overlap if not outright conflict with each other, but take a look at what wonder the marriage of technology and nature has produced:
Indeed, you just watched a Bearded Dragon Lizard play a pretty deft game of Ant Crusher on an HTC smartphone (judging by the looks of it in the video). It’s really hard to grasp how someone finds out that their lizard will play video games on a touchscreen phone, but I’m glad they did. It’s also a pretty fascinating testimonial of what kind of force must be behind the projection of the lizard’s tongue. I can’t get my smartphone to do respond at all when I’ve tried to press buttons with my knuckles or elbows (don’t ask) so that lizard must be punching that screen with some serious power.
Personally, I’ve never played Ant Crusher so I have no idea how difficult this game really is but now that I’ve seen a reptile do a knock-out job of playing it I’m a little hesitant to find out if I can do any better? What would that mean if I didn’t reach the watermark that the Lizard has set with that awesome score? These are questions I don’t really want to ask myself.
In an effort to make sure that your children never have to use chalk erasers and a blackboard to practice their addition problems or, really, for anything ever again, YouTube has kicked off a new service for specifically available to schools.
YouTube For Schools allows schools to access educational videos for free while limiting any other access to other content that is probably considered less than educational (so no more Play Him Off, Keyboard Cat videos for you kids while you’re at school). In order to focus the attention on the video’s content, The YouTube for Schools service will do away with the related videos you see cluttered on the right toolbar as well as prohibit any comments from being displayed; viewers will literally only be able to see the video.By aggregating content from forward-thinking educational video providers such as TED and PBS, schools will be able to compile material that will only be available within their school network. Educators will be able to search for videos throughout YouTube EDU’s collection of educational videos, which have been categorized by education levels and subjects. Check out the video below that YouTube put together to highlight some of their goals with their new endeavor:
The new YouTube-integrated education service will be a great tool for any distance learning programs that schools may have struggled to provide in the past. Students will be able to watch videos on science experiments, get help with math homework, learn and practice foreign languages, and keep up with global events both past and present.
YouTube formally announced its Xbox 360 app today. With the app, users can check out trending videos, browse categories, and of course search for videos. Here are some videos they shared to accompany the announcement:
I think it goes without saying that having YouTube on Xbox is going to be pretty big for driving video views on the console.
Nielsen says streaming video on game consoles is up over last year. The firm just put out results from an October survey on the topic. Here’s a look at that:
“Streaming now represents a reported 14 percent of Xbox 360 time, 15 percent of PS3 time and 33 percent of Wii time. This growth is fueled by the availability of services like Netflix, Hulu, MLB Network and ESPN3,” it says.
How do you think the YouTube app will affect that on Xbox?
Here’s a particularly timely infographic about YouTube facts from social-media-training.co.uk:
Apparently, if you want to promote your video game, or members of the company that developed it through the use of online video hubs like YouTube, you had better make sure Viacom didn’t, at any point, put their hands on it, otherwise, you’re video stands a good chance of being pulled.
Just ask video game developers Naughty Dog, who posted the trailer to their upcoming game, The Last of Us, on YouTube. Shortly after it appeared, it was taken down thanks to a copyright claim from Viacom. Their issue? Even though they didn’t make, produce, advise or star in The Last of Us, because the trailer in question was first shown during the VGA Awards show, which aired on Viacom-owned SpikeTV, Viacom’s claim was temporarily upheld.
Needless to say, such an overzealous application of copyright law, Viacom’s move got the Internet in a tizzy, including Reddit and Kotaku. According to the latter publication, the trailer, which was posted on Naughty Dog’s official YouTube page for the game in question, has been restored. The difference between the pulled on and the live version? The currently-live version mentions the VGAs in its title.
The trailer in question:
If you’ll notice, the title of the video is, “The Last of Us VGA 2011 Trailer,” which indicates as long as Viacom got a mention, they were OK with the video being posted. Before the attribution was given, this is what potential viewers saw when they tried to play the video:
And some people wonder why a large portion of the Internet is against SOPA. What, exactly, did Viacom gain from their strong-arming of The Last of Us trailer? Did they get to collect additional ad revenue? It’s doubtful because there are no advertisements appearing with the video. Furthermore, the revenue from the telecast has already been counted, so what motivated Viacom to act in such a petulant manner?
Making this situation even worse, SOPA hasn’t even been made into a law yet, so the fear is, scenarios where Viacom overvalues their position as a video game distributor will become commonplace if SOPA survives the legislative process.
Viacom did not make the video game, nor did they create the trailer, but because it was first shown on one of the many channels they own, they have a legal claim to content from an intellectual property that isn’t even theirs? And this is something that will improve once SOPA passes? Forgive me for scoffing at such a ridiculous idea.
In the future, perhaps Sony, Naughty Dog’s parent company, should no longer show first-run trailers on any Viacom-owned channels, even if it is for a video game award show. If Viacom is going to act obstinate about IP that doesn’t even belong to them, they should be blocked from receiving such exclusive content. Fair’s fair.
Google announced the launch of several new features for Google+ Hangouts.
For one, you can launch a Hangout from any post on Google+. There is now a “Hangout” button underneath any post, and if others are already hanging out, you can see their invitation in the comments of the post.
Google is also bringing Hangouts to Google+ Messenger on mobile devices. There is a new hangout icon inside. This will come out in the new Google+ app coming to the Android Market in the next few days. Google says it’s also coming soon to the app store.
Hangouts On Air was introduced in September to let a select few broadcast their hangouts to bigger audiences and record them. They debuted the feature with will.i.am. Google now says the feature is getting closer to general availability, but it’s not there quite yet.
However, they’re turning the feature on for hundreds more public figures, celebrities and other Google+ users with large followings. They’re making the feature completely self-service, and adding YouTube integration, so that when you’re off the air, a full-length, private recording of the video will be uploaded to your account.
Earlier this month, Google announced a new Hangouts with Extras feature that lets you make phone calls from inside Hangouts. Today, Google announced that it is making it possible to dial-in anyone from almost any country directly into a hangout, and calls to the U.S. and Canada are free.
Google is also making active Hangouts more accessible by adding them to the right-hand side of the stream, where you’ll now see up to three live hangouts that you can join, and sending you notifications when you’re invited to a hangout.
Finally, they’ve added a feature to let you put virtual antlers on yourself during hangouts for the holidays.
