dailymotion.com
Some people feel that YouTube is limiting in its range of content because it is essentially a video platform. Compared to other platforms, such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video, which provide a much broader range of choices for viewers to choose from, some find YouTube to be lacking.
Many people have voiced complaints about the number of ads that are popping up on YouTube. This is an issue before, during and sometimes after videos. The commercials are very intrusive and make watching videos really unpleasant. It looks like YouTube is headed in the direction of only increasing the ads, rather than hearing the public's complaints and scaling them back a little bit.
Many people have expressed concern about YouTube's policies on censorship, specifically their increasing tendency to remove content without warning or due process. This problem is compounded by the fact that demonetization can also have a crippling effect on a channel's revenue. As free speech becomes increasingly important, these issues need to be addressed.
These slipups on behalf of YouTube have allowed other video streaming platforms to rise up and amass hundreds of millions of unique monthly users. One such video streaming site that comes to mind is Vimeo, which has successfully managed to brand itself as a sort of anti-YouTube, with cooler censorship policies and absolutely zero ads. Unfortunately, though, Vimeo has not yet been able to even scratch the surface of engagement that YouTube has, which means that the range of videos available on Vimeo is going to be relatively very limited.
Another video streaming service that has seen a somewhat meteoric rise in fame and acclaim is Daily Motion. Perhaps you have heard of it or even come across it while web surfing before. Although it hasn't really come close to matching the popularity of YouTube, it has managed to outshine Vimeo with 300 million active monthly users. With this kind of reach, Daily Motion certainly isn't a passing fad to roll your eyes at. But could Daily Motion actually be viable as a dependable alternative to YouTube? Well, let's dive and take a look, shall we?
History
Benjamin Bejbaum and Olivier Poitrey founded Daily Motion in March of 2005. The website went live from the living room of Poitrey's Paris apartment. Between Bejbaum, Poitrey, and 4 others, a small group of 6 people was able to pool together ?6,000 in order to get the business started. These were very humble beginnings however, seeing as in September of the same year Dailymotion was able to raise investments from Atlas Ventures and Partech International to the tune of 7 million euros. According to French Web 2.0, Daily Motion received the most funds raised of any site in 2006. From there, the money just kept rolling in.
In 2009, the French government invested in Daily Motion through a federal Strategic Investment Fund. On January 25th, 2011, Orange purchased a 49% stake in the company, worth $62 million. As of October 31st, 2014, Daily Motion was worth $298 million.
In 2013, Orange acquired the remaining 51% of Dailymotion for 61 million. In May of that same year, the French government blocked an attempt by Yahoo to purchase the majority stock.
CEO of Daily Motion said that the company was excited about the future and looking forward to continuing growth.
In 2014, Orange announced it had been negotiating a deal with Microsoft to extend Daily Motion into the US market. Orange's CEO said that there was "great hope" that a deal could be made, so long as Orange retained the majority stake in the company. Talks with other potential partners were also made public. Vivendi purchased an 80% stake in Dailymotion, increasing it to 90% September of that year, keeping the company largely France-based. CEO of Daily Motion said that the company was excited about the future and looking forward to continuing growth.
Design
The site also features a blog and a wealth of information about all things video.
The Daily Motion website has a professional look about it. Honestly, upon first visiting the site, it may more closely resemble a news site than it does a proper video streaming platform. You'll find on the home page, a vertically cascading list of Featured videos, subtitled "top stories today," to give you an even better idea of what I mean. The site also features a blog and a wealth of information about all things video.
The site menu bar has a few options, such as the home page, featured content, and browsing by category. It has a very plain look with limited features, but it gives the page a sophisticated and minimalist feel.
Honestly, Daily Motion is the website that I have visited so far that has made me think I could potentially benefit from making it my home page. The fact that it is designed in the mold of popular news sites, perhaps, is where this instinct comes from. It's perfect for keeping up with current events, not just falling down a rabbit hole of potentially meaningless entertainment as one may be wont to do on YouTube. Maybe it could be said that Dailymotion is YouTube for the more serious or worldly video viewer.
Content
Daily Motion is a video streaming site with a focus on current events. The content here feels more productive and beneficial to view than other platforms, as it is of a higher caliber. This is likely due to the fact that certified content contributors are typically featured on Daily Motion, while on other sites there is more amateur content.
If, on the other hand, you are more inclined towards the latter, then you may be disappointed.
That being said, Daily Motion will have a narrower range of content than before. So it is a classic debate: quality or quantity? If you prefer to have more quality over quantity, Daily Motion has a lot to offer. If you like having a lot of content, Daily Motion might not be what you're looking for.
Desktop and Mobile Experience
There is a bit of a lag on videos as well as page loading when using Daily Motion. Videos sometimes waver in and out of resolution qualities, depending on what you are doing. One thing that is nice, however, about the desktop experience is the fact that as you scroll down a given page (below a playing video), the video will minimize itself into a bar above the content you are viewing, allowing you to keep browsing without missing out on the current content.
The Daily Motion app seems to provide a better overall experience than the website's experience. The app is much more streamlined and intuitive, with less lag and better performance. This might be the best way to enjoy everything that Daily Motion has to offer. Other people seem to agree - the app has an average rating of 4.5 stars on the Apple App Store.
Pricing and Plans
Daily Motion is completely free to use. There are no paywalls or subscriptions necessary to watch the content. Simply visit the page (or open the app) and enjoy hours of uninterrupted content.
Suggestions that I have for Daily Motion
I think it might be a good idea to redesign the desktop and mobile web browser version of Daily Motion. I don't necessarily mean from an aesthetic standpoint, because I think the site actually looks very nice. I'm speaking more from a functionality standpoint. Perhaps there are some coding shortcuts to be looked into so as to avoid video playback lag and make pages load more quickly.
If you are looking for well-executed videos that will keep you up-to-date on current events, Daily Motion is the site for you. There won't be as many videos as there are on YouTube, but they will be of a higher caliber on the whole.
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