YouTube Gets Trend-y

On Monday, YouTube announced YouTube Trends, which is similar in format to Google Trends. Naturally, it makes sense, since Google is YouTube's parent company.

The idea is for YouTube Trends to spotlight some of the 35 hours of video now uploaded to YouTube every minute, which makes it difficult to discover new content.

The company described YouTube Trends, in a blog post, as a "destination for daily insight into the zeitgeist of the world's largest video site."

More details from the blog post:

What you can find on YouTube Trends:

• New algorithmically-generated feeds that highlight trending videos and topics. (Over there →)
• A twice-daily collection of videos called "4 at 4" drawn from those feeds and from top video curation sites around the web. (If you’re on the homepage, up there ↑)
• A blog with more in-depth and contextual explorations of videos, trends, and cultural phenomenon as seen through the lens of YouTube, using YouTube’s own internal data. (You’re there now ↔)
• And a brand new dashboard that allows you to quickly explore what’s popular in different cities in the United States and in countries around the world, as well as within specific demographic sets. (Top right ?)

The Trends Dashboard is perhaps the most interesting part of all this. Right now, at the time of this writing, among the 10 videos shown as default are a Metrodome collapse videos, the famous Jet player being tripped video, and a Family Guy video.

The public now has a place to find the latest viral videos. And, as one might expect from a YouTube announcement, you can watch a YouTube intro video on YouTube trends below.