Reddit is looking to join the online video market after its co-founder, Alexis Ohanian, announced that it will soon launch Reddit Video to make its Ask Me Anything (AMA) series more visual.
The site’s AMA series, which connects celebrities and influential people with an audience that can ask them a series of questions, is easily one of its most popular features, but the site that calls itself ‘the front page of the internet’ now has plans to give it a visual upgrade.
According to The Verge, much of Reddit’s plans sees the addition of video as a means of reaching the celebrities they wish to do AMAs, particularly the likes of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West.
This would mark a major change for the site, which, until now, has been the largest host of content from the web, but hosts little to no original content.
A new storytelling medium
Speaking of its intentions, Ohanian said: “Reddit’s mission is to connect people across the world through authentic conversations, collaboration and community — video is an amazing storytelling medium and there’s no better wellspring of original stories than Reddit.”
Once it has developed Reddit Video for its AMA series, the company says that it will then begin testing video for the wider community, to turn their text posts into videos.
“Every community and every user has a voice on Reddit; we’re excited to use the power of video to amplify those voices,” said Jordan Oplinger, one of the people who has been recruited to begin working on Reddit Video.
Alexis Ohanian speaking at ROFLCon 2008 image via Scott Beale/Flickr
