The announcement of the new National Broadband Plan is probably the biggest news for the web in a long time. The US wants to not only catch up with other countries in term of speed and connectivity, but wants to be the world leader. This is going to have some significant impacts on our future in the world of web productions.
The goals of the Broadband Plan are simple: more connectivity for more people who don’t have it, and more speed for those of us who do. If you have a fast Cable or DSL connection already, you are going to see your speed doubling, tripling or even quadrupling over the next decade. This trend makes one thing clear: the future of the web is video, video, video.
It’s hard to believe that YouTube is only five years old. If users have a choice, they will choose to watch a video over reading an article containing similar content, and sites that feature video have the upper hand in the marketplace.
I recently built a new portal for my friends at Maximum Success and part of that process was producing original video content for the site. While the text and photos effectively communicate the message, people tell me that the video footage of leadership coach Micheal Burt and Colby Jubenville have the most profound impact. The experience wouldn’t be nearly as good without being able to see and hear Coach Burt talk about what he does in motion pictures.
Content is king: this is one of the undeniable commandments of web, and that content is increasingly in the form of moving pictures. The good news is that the costs of producing high quality HD video has plummeted thanks to low cost cameras and affordable editing solutions. Original content for your business site is now within easy reach of most everyone, and with a bit of consulting and creativity, you could have a knockout interactive site that is part brochure, part TV show, and all WOW.
Over the past year I’ve invested in high quality HD cameras, lighting equipment, and a portable setup that gets results that I still can’t believe sometimes. I remember local video productions from my childhood that always made me laugh because of their low production quality compared to film, and they probably cost the advertisers a good chunk of change. Today we can make feature film quality productions and publish them online in a matter of hours from start to finish.
It’s an exciting time in multimedia! If you’ve got ideas or feedback, feel free to contact me anytime.