Myspace Bans Photobucket Videos

[Rappy Veteran]

A Message to our Customers

Today MySpace made the decision to prevent Photobucket users from posting their videos and remixes to their MySpace pages.

This action by MySpace means that all of the videos and remixes you created will no longer show up on your MySpace profile, blog and comments section. More specifically, if you attempt to add new videos or remixes to your profile, they will be removed.

We are not happy about this and we?re pretty sure you?re not happy either. We appreciate that you have invested hundreds of thousands of hours using the editing, remixing and management tools and features available only on Photobucket. In particular, you've all been really embracing videos at Photobucket -- to the tune of 50,000 video uploads a day, which is great. Rest assured that your content is being kept safe in your Photubucket album even though it may disappear from your MySpace pages.

We believe that by limiting your ability to personalize your pages with content from any source, MySpace is contradicting the very belief of personal and social media. MySpace became successful because of the creativity of you, its users, and because it offered a forum for self-expression. By severely restricting this freedom, MySpace is showing that it considers you as a commodity which it can treat as it sees fit.

SOURCE

Stupid Myspace...Photobucket isnt the first they bann:pinch:nch:

[Sartoris]

So... do they want to host the bandwidth themselves or did photobucket want this?

[raskren]

So... do they want to host the bandwidth themselves or did photobucket want this?

Reading beyond the topic title works wonders.

We are not happy about this and we?re pretty sure you?re not happy either.

[Rappy Veteran]

Further to add Techcrunch got emailed by Photobucket to give their story...

Mike,

Tonight MySpace took the decision to prevent Photobucket users from posting

certain types of media to their MySpace pages.

This action by MySpace means that millions of pieces of content created by

our users may no longer be available on MySpace. This content represents

hundreds of thousand hours of effort on the part of our users ? hours

invested using the editing, remixing and management tools and features

available only on Photobucket. Conservative estimates put one in every two

page views on MySpace containing content from Photobucket users. This step

will have a drastic affect on the usability and appeal of MySpace.

More importantly, by limiting the ability of its users to personalize their

pages with content from any source, MySpace, is contradicting the very ethos

of personal and social media. MySpace became successful because of the

creativity of its users and because it offered a forum for self-expression.

By severely restricting this freedom, MySpace is showing that it considers

its users a commodity which it can treat as it sees fit.

Faced with the prospect of recreating their content using only the limited

resources available on MySpace, we believe users will vote with their feet

(and their keyboards) and turn instead to the other sites that Photobucket

links to on a daily basis. Photobucket users link to 300,000 different Web

sites every day from their Photobucket albums ? MySpace is just one of those

sites. This action by MySpace in no way affects Photobucket albums. The

content remains available in user albums for linking to other Web sites,

discussion boards, forums, e-commerce sites and blogs.

At Photobucket, we?ve seen a steady and growing trend by users towards

linking to a range of social networks ? not just MySpace. If MySpace

persists in blocking Photobucket and other personal media sites, users will

transfer their loyalties to a combination of these networks. Photobucket?s

business model is built on allowing users to support multiple identities by

providing a central resource for creating, enhancing, managing and sharing

their content. Our business is in no way dependent on being able to link to

MySpace alone.

We believe this action by MySpace is a retrograde step in the evolution of

the Web and an unacceptable attempt to limit the freedom of the very people

who are its lifeblood ? its users.

-alex

[Code.Red]

How exactly are Myspace blocking photobucket videos? If they are simply filtering the html video code, it could be very easy for photobucket to change their code around to bypass the filter.

[Popcorned1]

Yeah Code.Red, but then we have the issue of the lawsuit which would probably follow.

[Sartoris]

Reading beyond the topic title works wonders.

I meant why is MySpace doing this. The article does not explain this.

[Rappy Veteran]

I meant why is MySpace doing this. The article does not explain this.

They would rather you use their video service then another company's...they allow Youtube because of the deal they signed with Google for search purposes...thats my view on it...

[_bobcat_ Veteran]

This seems to be somewhat retarded.

How much control do Photobucket exert on the content they host when compared to YouTube? For example, does Photobucket allow users to upload anything, like porn, executions, other unpleasant things?

[Inplode]

myspace = trash

[Rappy Veteran]

This seems to be somewhat retarded.

How much control do Photobucket exert on the content they host when compared to YouTube? For example, does Photobucket allow users to upload anything, like porn, executions, other unpleasant things?

No they go through each picture as far as I know and they are deleted pretty quickly...Photobucket is probably one of the largest image providers and if Myspace shut themselves out to it they are being foolish...

[lerum]

They filtered photobucket because they show ads apparently in some of their content and MySpace doesn't like other companies making money off them :s

[Rappy Veteran]

Updated Story on April 12th

There was a lot of fingerpointing, denials, and “he said, she said” going on today as everyone digested the news that MySpace had blocked PhotoBucket’s 40 million members from embedding videos into their MySpace pages.

From my perspective this looks like MySpace just found an excuse to send a big middle finger to the largest independent widget company in the hope of disrupting their ongoing acquisition talks. Om Malik sees things differently and thinks Photobucket practically asked for this blockade (although see his more recent take). Robert Scoble calls Photobucket and services like it “parasitic.” Nick Carr says this is all basically inevitable, regardless of who’s to blame.

But the important question isn’t who’s fault this is. What is more interesting looking forward is, can Photobucket survive without MySpace?

I say yes.

Photobucket isn’t like YouTube, which was deeply unprofitable from day one. They’ve been at or near profitability for a long time, dipping back into the red to grow headcount and infrastructure. They have a diversified revenue stream - some from premium accounts and most from on-site advertising.

I took a look at their leaked revenue numbers from last month. Most of Photobucket’s revenue is generated from on-site advertising - 63% of it in 2005, and 68% in 2006. In the leaked documents the company says they’ll do $32 million in revenue this year. That projection is probably dead on because it is being distributed to potential buyers - any future variance could kill a deal in progress and so they are probably being very conservative.

That advertising revenue isn’t going anywhere. Unlike 2006, Photobucket is now set up as a destination site - a good hedge against exactly what MySpace did last night. The company says that over half of video views are now on their site (and generating advertising revenue), way up from a year ago. They also say that only 25% of their users embed videos at MySpace. At their current growth rate, even a permanent ban only sets them back six months or less in terms of users and page views.

And many MySpace/Photobucket users will simply leave MySpace and go to one of its many competitors rather than lose the ability to embed their Photobucket media. Re-creating a profile at another social network takes a lot less time than re-uploading hours of video. In the end, Photobucket could prove to be stickier than MySpace.

Photobucket execs were in a chipper mood today when I spoke to them, noting that traffic to the site is way up and that they’ve had more press attention in the last 24 hours than in the last year combined.

From Techcrunch

[Toology]

And many MySpace/Photobucket users will simply leave MySpace and go to one of its many competitors rather than lose the ability to embed their Photobucket media. Re-creating a profile at another social network takes a lot less time than re-uploading hours of video. In the end, Photobucket could prove to be stickier than MySpace.

Yeah, right. Getting your friends to join at a new service is what debunks that theory. There's no way in hell your friends will register at another social networking site just because you can't embed Photobucket videos. If you're a band or entertainer, good luck getting your fanbase of thousands of friends to migrate over to a smaller network. Who the hell has "hours" of video to show anyone anyway? Most people just have a few short clips that are under 10 minutes. If you don't want to upload them to MySpace, just provide an outside link to them to Photobucket.

[Smigit]

So does myspace yet have its own video hosting abilities? pretty sure that this was rumoured at some point and to be honest it wouldnt surprise me now.

[Code.Red]

So does myspace yet have its own video hosting abilities? pretty sure that this was rumoured at some point and to be honest it wouldnt surprise me now.

Yup, it's been up and running a for a while now. http://www.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids

I haven't seen many people use it, however.

[Rappy Veteran]

Yup, it's been up and running a for a while now. http://www.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids

I haven't seen many people use it, however.

They seem to have alot of independant film makers on there and some Fox stuff seeing as they are all owned by each other...

[Rappy Veteran]

Update on the Story...

Hi all,

Following discussions with MySpace, we?re pleased to announce that all Photobucket videos and remixes are enabled once more on MySpace with immediate effect. Both our companies are committed to putting our users first.

Moving forward, we?ve established open lines of communication and procedures with MySpace to prevent a sudden block of Photobucket content in future. We want our users to be able to share their content and understand it must be within the framework of MySpace?s Terms of Service for it to appear on the site.

Thanks for all your patience. And we really appreciate all the feedback we've received. We've read it all. Happy sharing!

Alex/CEO

Photobucket

[DJLunacy]

Update on the Story...

[sarcasm] THANK GOD! Now life makes sense again.[/sarcasm]

Great now i can watch even more lame video's and "remixes on profiles" not that i ever remember seeing them in the first place.

Thank you firefox