Writing has been at the centre of civilisation for millennia; that which differentiates us from the apes has always been best recorded as dried dye on a porous surface. But its creativity and power are now being undermined by video (with a little help from declining standards of literacy).
The massive growth in the use of video on the internet is well known. Until now, however, it has simply been a linear file – play, pause, stop. So if you like something you saw in a clip you have to go looking for it after watching the video – which means going back to scanning text and clicking away until you find it or get distracted by the next video.
This is starting to change, with far-reaching implications. The tools to interactivate video are already available on a widespread basis – see YouTube’s annotations. Here, however, restrictions are placed on the navigation options. At Quick.tv we take the opposite approach & will encourage our users to get the best possible use from their clips.
All of which implies that ultimately, text will largely be replaced by video. It will be commonplace for viewers will navigate down their chosen video path, scroll & click to buy what they see then clip on up the road. No horrible text to tax the brain.
The digital generation is about to trump the caveman.