SCOTT KIDDER — Ah, the good old days of April, 2005. Everything was so different... errr... I guess it's just a year and a half ago, so not that much has changed. But April 28, 2005 is the first record of the now infamous YouTube in the Wayback Machine.
What to make of what appears to be the very first question asked in online dating? Did YouTube originally have different intentions than becoming a haven for copyrighted material and averting giant lawsuits by big media by granting them equity right before being acquired by Google for a mind-blowing $1.6 billion?
Thoughts in the comments, or to tips@valleywag.com.
UPDATE: Turns out a recent Time profile reveals YouTube's true origins: a video version of HotorNot.com.
Time quotes Youtube cofounder Jawed Karim:
"I was incredibly impressed with HOTorNOT, because it was the first time that someone had designed a website where anyone could upload content that everyone else could view. That was a new concept because up until that point, it was always the people who owned the website who would provide the content."
The idea of a video version of HOTorNOT lasted only a couple of months. "It was too narrow," says Chad. He notes that another early idea was to help people share videos for online auctions. But as the site went live in the spring of 2005, the founders realized that people were posting whatever videos they wanted.
April 28 2005: YouTube.com [Wayback Machine]
The Gurus of YouTube [Time.com]
