James Delahunty
27 Jan 2007 18:50
Amateur filmmakers are increasingly turning to the Internet not only to achieve the fame they crave, but to also get paid for the distribution of their videos. Sites like YouTube are revolutionizing how we share and view video clips online, but there are many more sites offering filmmakers better video quality and the possibility of earning some money for their videos.
Joe Eigo is a martial arts expert who created a video "Matrix - For Real" and subsequently added it to the video site Metacafe.com. The video gathered great attention in a few months time, adding up to over 5 million views, and $25,000 in revenue for Eigo. "I was really surprised," said Eigo, who occasionally lands stunt man roles in movie and theater productions.
"We're being much more selective about the videos than other sites because we think this is about entertainment," Metacafe founder Arik Czerniak said. Metacafe pays $5 for 1,000 views, and begins paying out for videos after 20,000 views (a minimum payout of $100). YouTube is also currently working on an ad revenue sharing system for original content.
Source:
Reuters