Last week the video hosting website Vessel.com opened it’s doors to the world, for $2.99 a month. It’s a bold move, charging a monthly fee for access to videos that will usually end up on YouTube after 72 hours. Some of YouTube’s most successful content creators were invited to be a part of this new video venture and provide Vessel viewers exclusive early viewing rights to their latest video on Vessel before anyone else can see them for free on YouTube three days later.
One of those YouTubers, Derek Muller of , describes it as paying a premium to see the latest film in theater before it hits DVD and then your television months or years later. While I understand the comparison, it’s not entirly correct. Vessel is using the same medium as YouTube – my computer or smartphone screen. So if Vessel wants me to pay $2.99 a month, their “venue” has to exceed YouTube’s much like a movie theater exceeds my living room. So, after signing up for a 30 day trial I can report back that the player appears to run smoother than YouTube, there are no pop-up annotations, ads you have to X out of, or any of the other annoying distractions you find on YouTube. In fact, it’s almost exactly like Vimeo – which, last I checked, costs zero a month. So, I’ll stick it out for the 30 days and have a more detailed report for you then. If you want to check it out yourself, watch Veritasium’s video to find out how to get your 30 day trial.
