Google has created a new way to preview videos via mobile search.
On Aug. 18, Google announced an interesting update to its mobile search results page. If a Google search result can pull up a video, it will show a silent, six-second video clip. This addition is available through the Google app and Chrome; It isn’t available on desktop yet. The clip update was created to help people quickly decide if the video is the one they want to watch.
According to TechCrunch, the video preview will work for the “vast majority” of videos on the internet.
Emily Moxley, Google’s director of product management for this project, said “any video on the web is eligible for inclusion, though Google may not have a preview for some of the newest videos available yet because it takes the servers a bit of time to build the previews.”
Not the best addition for news clips
TechCrunch rightly points out the six-second video preview sans sound in thumbnail form won’t help users “feel out” videos all that well. However, a clip is better than nothing at all.
For example, this new preview feature could work well for things like instructional dancing videos or cooking videos. While one video may just show a person cooking and talking, another may show the video is enhanced with step-by-step recipe tricks.
Expansion of the Google algorithm
Google’s algorithm makes the new feature possible.
We all know that most often, the first six seconds of most videos aren’t representative of what the entire video is about. Google’s algorithm is able to analyze any video and then “decide” what six-second clip to feature.
Prashant Baheti, Google product manager, told TechCrunch “the algorithm looks at what’s in the different scenes in a video, where those scenes start and end, and which scenes best represent the video.”
However, the algorithm doesn’t look at the user’s query. “Unlike the previously launched Featured Snippet, which directly links to the relevant answer to one of your questions in a video, the snippets are always the same,” TechCrunch added.
What this means for cam models
Obviously, any video enhancement could help cam models who make videos get more clicks. If the Google algorithm works as well as the company says, the mobile addition hopefully will direct potential fans to the best part of models’ videos .
We are curious to see if the Google app or Chrome somehow filters out any potential adult content, though.
Hopefully, the addition will prove to be helpful for everyone — including cam models — who makes video content.
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Abbie Stutzer is a writer and editor from Lawrence, Kansas. Find her on Twitter at @abbiestutzer and on Insta at @abbiestutzer. Email her at abbie@ynotcam.com.
