Is Youtube Leanback A Revolutionary New Way to Unite Television with Youtube, or Another Social Media Waste?
In an attempt to slowly (quickly) take over the world, Google has reportedly recently decided to tap into the living rooms of millions of viewers and launch their new product, YouTube Leanback. This interactive television channel is a new way to watch YouTube, all without even having to click your mouse.
Because it’s able to connect to your TV, Leanback is your unique channel screening all of your favorite videos. You can sort the videos by your personal feed or a previously-determined genre, depending on which mood you’re in. Some refer to it as the Pandora Radio of the video world, only much more tailored. It’s a new, personalized channel for your very own viewing pleasure.
However great Google Leanback may be, many speculate that it may have little to no effect on television cable companies’ business. Since most YouTube videos are around two to five minutes long, will people want to stream a live channel of homemade videos? Yes, they’re nice to sift through when you have nothing else to do, but will users actually sit down in front of the television to enjoy these short clips?
Another happy little feature of Leanback is the ability to link a Facebook profile to Leanback’s Preferences, so that everyone in your Friend’s list can know exactly what you watch. Perhaps it’s another way for Google to become intimately connected to the social media phenomenon. My question is: why doesn’t Google just try to buy out Facebook like with YouTube? If you can’t beat them, join them.
Oh yeah, that Zuckerberg guy.
