• New York Times et al., Monday, May 17, 2010 1:52 PM

YouTube has turned 5, and wonks are taking the opportunity to marvel at the time gone by, and what has clearly become one of the Web's great success stories. Long discounted as a mishmash of amateurish one-hit-wonders and stupid human (and animal) tricks, its "cornucopia of content appears to be turning YouTube -- considered by many to be a risky investment when it was bought for $1.65 billion at the end of 2006 -- into one of Google's smartest acquisitions," writes The New York Times.

Playing the role of proud parent, Google on Monday announced that its video-sharing site now has more than 2 billion views -- a day. What's more, YouTube, the third most visited Web site in the world according to Alexa, offers local versions in 23 countries across 24 different languages (70% of its traffic is from outside the United States), receives 24 hours of uploaded video every minute, and garners 45 million home page impressions every day.

"We've been tracking YouTube's explosive growth for some time, and the numbers are beyond impressive," remarks Mashable.

"Today, the site ... is an Internet force to be reckoned with," notes ABC News.

Writes Gizmodo: "Just like 'Google' is now synonymous with 'search,' YouTube has become something bigger than a mere Web site, representing for many people the whole idea of what it means to publish and watch video on the Web."

Likewise, Fast Company concludes: "Since it launched in 2005, YouTube has become one of the few Internet properties that's much more than a domain name."

Calling the site a "fundamental part of the Internet," Fortune writes: "Even though Google hasn't yet announced that the service is turning a profit, the future is bright for YouTube ... Not only is it growing on the Web and on mobile devices (thanks in large part by Google's decision to support H.264 viewing on the iPhone), but it also has a future on the TV."

What's more, "The world of online video continues to explode and marketers continue to try to build the next great viral piece," writes Marketing Pilgrim. "If there are this many eyeballs looking for something to look at on a daily basis, that quest is likely to accelerate."

Read the whole story at New York Times et al. »