First video uploaded to YouTube

A new video-sharing website called YouTube has posted its first video, an 18-second clip of one of its founders at a zoo.

The video, titled Me at the zoo, was uploaded on 23 April by Jawed Karim, who is shown standing in front of the elephants at San Diego Zoo, remarking on the length of their trunks.

Sharing videos made simple

YouTube was set up by Karim, Chad Hurley and Steve Chen, three former employees of the online payment company PayPal. The site aims to make it easy for anyone to put their home videos on the internet and share them with friends, family and the wider world.

Until now, sharing videos online has been difficult. Files are large, and viewers often need to download special software to play them. YouTube converts videos into a format that can be played in a web browser using Adobe's Flash player, which is already installed on most computers.

Users can upload clips from their digital cameras and camcorders, and other people can watch them straight away, leave comments and send links to their friends.

The rise of user-generated content

The site is part of a growing trend for websites built around content created by their users rather than by professional publishers. Blogs, photo-sharing sites such as Flickr and social networks such as MySpace have attracted millions of users.

The spread of broadband internet, cheap digital cameras and camera phones means more people than ever are able to record and share video.

Early days

YouTube is still being tested, and the founders are running it from a small office in California. They have received money from investors, but have not yet said how the site will make money, although advertising is expected to play a part.

There are questions over copyright, as some users may upload clips from television programmes and films without permission. The founders say they will remove material if copyright holders complain.

A crowded field

YouTube is not the only video-sharing site, and larger companies, including Google, are developing their own services. But its founders believe that making the site simple to use will help it stand out.

The first video may be short and unremarkable, but the idea behind it could change the way people watch video.