Yahoo! Streaming Directory

Yahoo! expanded its Yahoo! Movies site with the launch of an Online Shorts Directory. The directory compiles information on animated and real video shorts from partnered content providers including: AtomFilms, iFilm, Icebox, FilmFilm and Hyponotic.

"Yahoo! Movies brings the popular Yahoo! model of a comprehensive and easy-to-use directory to the world of short films,'' said Matt Rightmire, vice president and general manager, media and entertainment, Yahoo! Inc. "We are providing a single place for people to be entertained through online shorts, one of the most dynamic entertainment vehicles on the Internet."

Users can search or browse short films by title, subject, or genre, and write or read reviews on the Yahoo! site. However, Yahoo! does not serve the media files, but sends the user to the content providers' site for delivery.

Yahoo! is not offering anything new to the Web, with competitors such as Streamsearch.com and Yack.com, having already established directories of streaming content on the Web. However, neither competitor has the user base of a mega portal such as Yahoo!. The move indicates the acknowledgement by Yahoo! of the growing importance of streaming content to Internet users.