Still in its infancy, Joost aims to take the best
elements of the Web 2.0 movement: user-produced video, content sharing and social networking, and apply them to Web-based TV. It also seeks licensing, revenue and content sharing deals -- something
unimaginable for a file-sharing service a few years ago. Now, Viacom, owner of MTV, Comedy Central, VH1, Spike TV and other cable networks popular with the 18-34 crowd, has agreed to broadcast its
programs on the fledgling TV service.
The deal involves ad-revenue sharing, and it also gives the media giant a degree of control over its programming that Google and YouTube would not. Even so, the co-founders claim that Joost isn't a direct competitor with YouTube; they cite cable TV instead. They also claims Joost's technology is piracy and copyright-infringement proof.
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