StartUp Beat

-YouTube lawsuit and the future of online video - Viacom’s $1 billion lawsuit against Google’s YouTube has certainly put the future form of online video in question.  Scott Flacks, vice president of marketing and operations at Los Angeles-based online video site Stickam, says that the suit’s effect on online video may ultimately be positive, as “it will push the judicial system to interpret/clarify the laws regarding these (copyright) issues.”  Flacks also sees the suit as part of the development of the online video industry, saying that it “may slow down the growth of this industry while the issues are being resolved, but definitely won’t stop it.”  With the growth in broadband Internet access, the proliferation of video sites on the Internet, including leaders like YouTube and Stickam, new media ad networks like Spotrunner and Bid4Spots, not to mention the burgeoning phenomenon of user-generated content, it seems that a paradigm shift in content distribution has already taken place, and Viacom’s lawsuit may be a last vestige of the “old world” approach to media content.  Flacks believes News Corporation’s purchase of My Space may have also played a role in Viacom’s action: “I think Viacom is still smarting from their losing out to Rupert on My Space,” he said.

-SoCalTech today features an interesting interview with Ali Diab, president of products and technology at El Segundo-based Ripple, which is building a network of displays in public areas that feature news and information.  The key for Ripple is really going to be content—in a world where people are often dealing with information overload, it will be critical to offer content that captures an audience.  Diab recognizes this, talking in the interview about being “content driven” and offering granular local information: Interview with Ali Diab, President of Products and Technology, Ripple