I already mentioned that when I picked up my copy of Leopard at Best Buy the other week, the checkout clerk clearly recognized me for my videos on YouTube. That was the first time I’d ever been “seen” as a YouTube publisher in public. Pretty nifty.

I got an email from fellow YouTube partner, Howard Pinsky. He was asking me what I thought about YouTube’s new advertising strategy. I really think they’re doing it wrong, FWIW. Howard responded:

People who do what you do on YouTube is the future, in my opinion. YouTube will eventually be a TV alternative where people can watch online shows by it’s community members. “Quality content providers”. Whether it be comedy, tech, etc, and the people who are providing this content should be paid like television content providers. I hope YouTube/Google can see down the road, realistically.

With YouTube’s reach, they can bring in millions of views for each episode they promote and with proper advertising, millions of dollars. Using their current ad system is stupid. Users block out the little ad in the corner and it drives in next to nothing.

We shall see where they take this.

I’d go as far as to say that YouTube is already TV – and it’s already better television, too. I’ve been quite aware of where advertising is headed, and I’ve been looking for smart sponsors all the while. Watching this video only strengthens my resolve: