New YouTube API allows free web hosting for all

One of the most popular video streaming sites YouTube has revealed a very powerful API (application Programming Interface), which will allow publishers to broadcast video content using their own skin and specifications - direct from their own web sites for no cost at all.

It is being pitched at businesses and brands. This API will facilitate publishers and enterprises to effectively outsource the hassle of video delivery to Google’s reliable video delivery infrastructure. It is anticipated to be a boon for firms wanting to deploy video for training as well as in-house communication purposes. Besides, it also provides enterprises a branded player with a powerful set of recommendations and other useful features, plus potentially huge distribution to promote and inform. However, it threatens many video providers that cater to the custom-player market.

This YouTube API marks a major evolution for the user-generated site. It shifts the image of YouTube from a hugely popular destination platform to being a highly advanced video publishing infrastructure, available to business and publishers alike.

Some of the new features included in the API are the ability to add and edit user and video metadata, plus localised feeds for the 18 international markets that YouTube supports. The new API promises to provide a real-time player later this year.