Google grads seek traffic for how-to video startup

By Jon Cook

TORONTO (Reuters.com) - The Web is full of user-generated video, but for Sanjay Raman's tastes most of it is too bland and poorly produced to actually watch.

So last year he launched Howcast (www.howcast.com), a video-sharing website dedicated to do-it-yourself content with former Google colleagues Jason Liebman and Dan Blackman.

While at Google the three Howcast co-founders noticed how popular do-it-yourself content was, but how little of it was in video format.

"How-to content is something that is really popular in terms of user search queries," said Raman, who worked as product manager for Google Apps. "As video was really exploding online we saw the opportunity to marry those two concepts together."

Howcast, which employs 30 people split between offices in New York and San Francisco, features videos on topics ranging from "How to teach your dog to play dead" to "How to start a fire with a battery".

The videos are broken down into 25 categories and are narrated in a step-by-step manner, beginning with a list of things you'll need for the project. They are accompanied by separate text-based instructions, or wiki guides.

Unlike other DIY sites, such as About, eHow, ExpertVillage, Videojug and 5min, Howcast utilizes a more entertaining and humorous approach. Some of its most- popular videos are more tongue-in-cheek in nature, such as "How to find out a girl's name after you've slept with her" and "How to grow grass in someone's keyboard."

"We try to take the format of a how-to and make it more exciting and engaging than it would normally be," said Raman.

In order to boost their video content, Howcast created a program that pays filmmakers, mostly students, between $50-100 to produce videos for them.

"One of the reasons behind creating our own content was that we could create compelling videos that advertisers would want to monetize or sponsor...If you just have user-generated content you may not be able to drive advertising dollars or engage advertisers in producing content with you."

Despite the economic downturn, Howcast has raised $10 million in funding, with $8 million coming from New York venture capital firm Tudor Investment.

The founders' Google connections have also helped them land distribution deals with a who's who of online video players: YouTube, AOL, Yahoo, MySpace, Hulu, Metacafe, Dailymotion and Bebo.

Late last year Howcast created an iPhone application that has so far generated 500,000 downloads and was featured in an Apple commercial. It was also voted one of Time Magazine's "50 Best Websites of 2008" and Raman said they are currently averaging about 20 million monthly playbacks.

"We've actually doubled our traffic in the past six months," he said, which has helped bring in more advertising revenue through deals with JetBlue, Playboy and mobile network AT&T.

THE PITCH