Vimeo

Vimeo is a website where users can share and watch videos online.

Brief History

Vimeo was created in 2004 by filmmakers wanting to share their videos online. The Vimeo headquarters office is located at 555 West 18th Street in New York City.

Memberships

Vimeo has three types of membership: Basic, Plus, and PRO. The Basic membership provides users with simple privileges, such as 500MB of video storage and 1 high-definition video each week, and 10 video uploads per day. The Plus membership increases privileges, giving users 5GB of storage per week and changing all videos from standard quality to HD quality. While the Basic membership is free, the Vimeo Plus membership costs $9.95/month. The PRO membership ups the allowance even more, with 20GB per week available for video storage. Accounts can also be set to “Private Mode,” which prevents videos from showing up on Vimeo’s actual website. Vimeo PRO is best used for businesses that need a host website for entrepreneurial videos. Vimeo PRO is also significantly more expensive than Plus, at a cost of $199/year.

Special Features

Vimeo offers a variety of features that are more unique to the site: Creative Commons, Vimeo On Demand, Perks, Music Store, and Video School.

Creative Commons

Creative Commons issues copyright licenses to users for their videos. This helps reduce the legal problems which accompany sharing videos and "derivative works," or creations influenced by another's work. There are four types of licenses:

(1) Attribution License: Others may copy and share your video and derivative works, but must attribute credit to you.

(2) Share Alike License: Others may share derivative works but must have the same license as you.

(3) Non-Commercial License: Others may copy and share your work and derivative works, but must only do so for non-commercial use.

(4) No Derivative Works License: Others may copy and share your work, but not derivative works influenced by it.

Vimeo On Demand

Vimeo On Demand allows users to sell their videos and receive roughly 90% of the revenue gained. These videos are sold in HD format and can be viewed on any device. Users can also decide on their own price for each of their videos. This feature is available only to Vimeo PRO members.

Perks

Vimeo Perks provides discounts to Vimeo Plus and PRO users on cameras, equipment, and software. Participating companies are among "B&H, Kessler, Red Giant, Letus and GarageCUBE."

Music Store

Vimeo's own Music Store gathers music that is open to use by members without the hassle of copyrights and leases. Some tracks are free of charge through Creative Commons licenses, while others have small costs depending on whether intended for personal or professional use. Members can also create their own soundtracks by using the SmartSound studio.

Video School

Video School provides guidance to Vimeo users through tutorials and advice on how to make the best videos. For complete beginners, Vimeo offers a series of Video 101 tutorials that teach the basics of video creating and sharing. Vimeo Lessons offer tutorials for specific video techniques and tools. Users can take advantage of this platform to learn and improve their video editing skills.