Citizen journalists have increased both in number and importance in recent years. And Google is now seeking to bring some order to the chaos of how amateur footage is delivered online with YouTube Direct matching citizen journalists with news media organizations.

Citizen Journalists

There was a time when news coverage was strictly professional, delivered by paid reporters, photographers, and cameramen. And then everything changed with digital cameras and video cameras standard on cellphones.

Now, any Tom, Dick, or Harry can be a citizen journalist, reporting the news as it happens in front of them. Twitter and social networks are an important facet of this trend, as is online video and in particular YouTube.

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YouTube is now offering viewers the chance to watch videos in Full HD or 1080p high-definition.

This is an important move not just to support the increasing number of home video cameras with HD options but also to give professional content creators confidence that the platform is right for their work.

YouTube Video Quality

When YouTube first launched four years ago, video quality (360p) on the site wasn’t great. But that wasn’t what the site was about so it didn’t matter. YouTube was there to offer a free and easy way for people to host video online. And it did that so well that Google paid $1.65 billion for the site a year later.

But times move on, as does technology.

YouTube first started offering a ‘High Quality’ (480p) version of some videos, and while the difference wasn’t vast it was noticeable. Then in December 2008 YouTube launched ‘High-Definition’ video, which took the clips to a native 720p.

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Having experimented with a number of different types of advertising and settling on none in particular, Google is once again experimenting with pre-roll adverts that play before video clips. The difference this time is they’re skippable.

YouTube Revenue Vs Pageviews

Since buying YouTube for $1.65 billion in 2006, Google has tried to turn it into a moneymaking site. It’s certainly managed to take the site to the next level, with it now managing one billion page views a day, but the revenue still hasn’t come.

There’s been some debate over whether YouTube makes money, breaks even, or loses money every year but needless to say revenue needs to be upped in order for Google to make its money back. Especially as Google CEO Eric Schmidt has admitted the company paid $1 billion too much for the online video site.

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On Sunday, U2 played a gig at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in California as part of their current world tour. It streamed live on YouTube and managed to rack up 10 million viewers. Which is a huge success for both Google and the Akamai content delivery network which handled the event.

Live Success

YouTube is no stranger to live streaming, having experimented with the method of broadcasting a few times since being acquired by Google. However, Sunday night’s U2 concert was a hit like the site has never experienced before.

When competing with the bread and butter of YouTube – the viral videos generated by users – the U2 concert was a relative failure, but gaining such a large audience for an event such as this is nothing short of spectacular.

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U2 are a hugely popular group with fans from every part of the world, many of whom will never get to see the band live. But YouTube is offering those fans the chance to experience the next best thing – live streaming of their California gig this Sunday (Oct. 25).

Live Streaming

Live streaming video is an everyday occurrence on the Web these days, with lifecasting sites such as Justin.tv, UStream, and Livestream (formerly known as Mogulus) offering everyone the chance to air an event to the wider world.

Last month saw Livestream launch Livepack, which includes all the kit required to film and stream live events such as weddings, graduations, and concerts. And all in a compact enough size to fit in a backpack.

U2 On YouTube

While that is a brilliant innovation, live streaming of big events is still a relatively rare treat for Internet users. I’m talking about rock concerts from big, well-known bands. Like for instance, I don’t know, U2.

Which is exactly who is lined up for a live streaming event on YouTube this coming weekend. As the video below previews, YouTube will live stream U2’s sold-out gig at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in California this Sunday.

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It was three years ago today that Chad Hurley and Steve Chen sold YouTube to Google for $1.65 billion. It has celebrated that anniversary by revealing the site now gets over one billion views a day worldwide and talking a little about the future.

Three Years Ago Today

It seems like just yesterday that the co-founders of YouTube sold the site to Google. In fact, it was a full three years ago that Google decided to ante up $1.65 billion for the fledgling online video site.

We found out just yesterday that Google CEO Eric Schmidt thought that price tag was around $1 billion out, with the site actually worth more like $600 million. But Google wanted the site so badly it was willing to pay a premium for it.

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Were you one of the many who back in 2006 wondered why on earth Google was paying $1.65 billion for YouTube, a site with no revenue and a ton of problems? Then you weren’t alone because even Google CEO Eric Schmidt thought it was overpriced.

YouTube Is Go

In February of 2005, a site popped up on the Internet that would cause a massive shift in how video is served on the Web. It would ease the process, and provide a platform for video of all kinds, mostly user-generated content.

Its name, if you hadn’t already guessed, was YouTube. And it has grown in the last four years to become one of the biggest and most popular sites on the Web, with millions of people from all corners of the world visiting and using the site on a daily basis.

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