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Online video business heating up

Websites that are based on the surfers` contents, mainly online videos, seem to be the hottest business around these days. With YouTube joining hands with Warner Music Group, Sony purchasing Grouper in a $65 million deal, and giant Google launching its own video clips site, it is Yahoo!`s turn to join in as well. The California based company said Tuesday it is acquiring San Francisco`s Jumpcut, a video editing and remixing site.

Jumpcut allows Internet surfers to upload photos and video and edit them on the site. The service is a virtual studio, with the standard conventional video editing software. On Jumpcut, content from Hollywood`s studios and music from major record labels is also available. But not only Hollywood is the source for the videos. With the increasing popularity of digital cameras and cell phones that capture video anyone can do it.

Yahoo ranks No. 1 in the number of people who stream videos on its site, with 37.9 million different U.S. viewers in July. MySpace had 37.4 million and YouTube came in third with 30.5 million. Besides the business implications of these mergers and the growing competition, the recent acquisition is evidence of a growing trend in the internet culture. "It is a way for people who don`t think of themselves as artists and videographers to be one," said Jason Zajac, vice president of Yahoo`s social media division.