There's a new player in the world of user created cat videos. Amazon takes direct aim at Google by introducing their own competitor to YouTube. It's called Amazon Direct Video and it aims to take user-generated video hosting service to a new level.
That's obviously an ambitious goal considering how much YouTube owns that space, but if anyone can give YouTube a run for its money, Amazon might be the one to do it. The Amazon Direct Video service will offer various ways for content creators to monetize their videos. This includes making them available under an ad-based program like YouTube, but also includes the ability to sell or rent your vids directly on Amazon Prime Video.
Amazon's program also includes something called AVD Stars which gives budding videographers a piece of the $1 million Amazon will put up every month. This chunk of community change is beyond any revenue generated from their videos. Here's a link to the new service for folks who want to check it out: Amazon Video Direct. Will AVD be able to stand up to the juggernaut that is YouTube?
Below we have Amazon's full press release in the thread.