In recent years, sites such as YouTube and Hulu became household names. To give you an idea about the online video phenomenon, in December 2009, Nielsen Online reports that over 137 million people watched Internet videos! That’s a lot of viewers flocking to the Internet for video-based information and entertainment. In fact, that number represents an 11.8 percent increase in online video viewership compared to December 2008. If you thought 2009 was a hot year for Internet video, watch out for 2010!

A recent press release from comScore reveals what most of us already know: Google video sites (such as YouTube which is owned by Google) are the go-to destinations for online videos. At a whopping 39.4% market share, Google video sites are by far the most popular with viewers. In contrast, the number two Internet video site, Hulu, has but a fraction of market share, 3%. The comScore data reveal another interesting tidbit: Online video is mainstream with 84.8 percent of the total United States Internet audience having viewed videos online – at an average of 12.2 hours of videos watched per viewer.

The recent data from comScore and Nielsen confirm that 2009 was indeed a spectacular year for online video. In addition, the future looks rosy with predictions that video consumption will continue to increase. Not only will viewers continue accessing videos online via traditional computers, mobile video is becoming a reality. For example, users of “smartphone” devices like the iPhone and Droid and other mobile Web devices such as netbooks and the iPad are accessing the mobile Web by the millions. Researchers predict that up to 90 million video viewers will access online videos from mobile devices. Other predicted video delivery methods include: console-based and online gaming platforms, email, and social network sites.

What are all these millions of Internet video viewers watching? comScore’s findings reveal that the average online video’s duration is four minutes which makes sense based on YouTube’s dominance in market share.

In many ways, online video is much like online text. Just as Internet readers tend to want to read shorter, easy-to-quickly-scan articles online instead of in-depth academic expositions, it appears that Internet video watchers want to watch short clips online, not full featured movies and documentaries. After all, computer screens aren’t exactly easy on the eyes. Plus, tiny screens can’t compare to the huge HDTV screens populating the family rooms of America.

So, what does all of this mean to you? You may be part of the 84.8 percent of Americans who have watched a few clips of video online. Even if you’re not enamored with watching Internet videos, your audience may be. If you haven’t yet added video marketing to your marketing plan, 2010 may be the year to do so. From a business point of view, there are many ways to spread your message and business videos are an excellent way to do so. Not only can your marketing videos show your customer base who you are or how to use your products, many of your customers may be searching for companies like yours specifically using video searches.

What are your video marketing plans for 2010? Will you be a part of the online video phenomenon or do you think it’s just a passing fad? Share your thoughts – we’d love to explore this in greater detail!