Influx

YouTube is a billion channel universe, but explore it by brand and you quickly notice that this ecosystem has different component parts.

Influx went through a hypothetical exercise; we tried imagining a “channel” for Sony’s PS3.

Exploring some of the 44k videos on the site and trying to organize them into themes, it breaks down into something like this:

1.    Instructional Information

Set-up videos have become alternative instructional manuals. Here’s how to set up and use your PSP with your PS3.

View count: 20k

Here’s a video on how to use the console’s web browser.

View count: 122k

2.    Hacking the System

How to run more on your PS3.

View count: 118k

3.    Brand destruction as entertainment and edutainment

Some people destroy the unit just for the hell of it.

View count: 3.5 million, this film with the most views of any PS3 film

Others, open it up, so you can learn what’s inside

4.    Community Conversation

Here’s a group of YouTubers debating why and why not PS3 is better than other consoles.

5.    Brand meets culture-news

Dozens of video showing launch chaos from around the world.

6.    Game and feature trailers

Here’s one for Sony’s new Second Life type environment for PS3 users.

7.    Advertising

Somewhere in all this, lies the advertising.

Obviously, all this might not be ideal content for an officially sanctioned PS3 channel from Sony, but there are clearly more areas they can play in.

-    Creating video-based instruction manuals

-    Highlighting new features

-    Game trailers and previews

-    Videos that explain the technology behind the system

In essence, brands could be doing more with YouTube by producing and distributing content, other than just advertising; material that could have broader reach and usage in this new ecosystem.