# Viral Videos Viral Videos names the practice of online clips spreading by email, forums and social sharing, with the earliest widely passed example, the Dancing Baby, dating to 1996. The term itself was popularized in 2009 after David After Dentist blew up on YouTube, and by 2011 the canon included Chocolate Rain, Double Rainbow, Bed Intruder and Friday. ## Origin Clips passed widely online trace back to the mid-1990s[4]. The Dancing Baby, a 3D rendered toddler shuffling to Blue Swede's "Hooked on a Feeling," was the first widely distributed example, forwarded through email in 1996 when video file sizes were still too heavy for most connections[4]. For nearly a decade, email attachments, personal webpages and Flash hubs like Newgrounds carried most of the traffic. YouTube launched on April 23, 2005, when co-founder Jawed Karim uploaded a 19-second clip titled "Me at the zoo" from San Diego Zoo's elephant enclosure[3]. The site hit 120 million videos and 300 million accounts within five years[1]. The specific term "viral video" only caught on in 2009, after booba1234's clip David After Dentist, filmed in the summer of 2008 and posted on January 30, 2009, broke out on YouTube[4]. - **Platform:** Email chains / YouTube (viral spread) - **Creator:** Unknown - **Date:** 1996 ## Overview Viral Videos cover a wide range of clip types: music uploads, scripted sketches, candid gaffes, shock footage, amateur home videos and news interview moments that got reposted everywhere[1]. More editable clips often spawn parodies, remixes and YouTube Poops, with Numa Numa by Gary Brolsma and the Technoviking clip offering textbook cases of a short video getting rebuilt by fans in dozens of forms[4]. Dial-up speeds in the 1990s meant most early viral material actually circulated as animated GIFs rather than proper video files[4]. Music uploads make up a separate strand. Early YouTube hosted large volumes of unofficial song rips that later vanished under copyright claims, after which labels set up official channels. Many famous artists upload music videos through VEVO, a joint venture originally formed by Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group and EMI[2]. VEVO uploads such as Justin Bieber's "Baby" rack up views on brand power rather than organic sharing, so they occupy a different slot from clips like Chocolate Rain or Bed Intruder[4]. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Viral Videos? Viral Videos names clips that spread widely through online sharing, by email, blogs, forums and video sites like YouTube, covering music, sketches, candid moments and shock clips[1]. ### Where did Viral Videos come from? The earliest widely distributed clip, the Dancing Baby, circulated by email in 1996; YouTube launched in April 2005 and absorbed most sharing after that[1][4]. ### What does Viral Videos mean? The label applies to any video clip that gains mass popularity through online sharing, with the specific term popularized in 2009 after David After Dentist blew up[4]. ### How do you use Viral Videos? People share clips through social posts, forum threads and messaging, then remix the more editable ones into parodies, YouTube Poops or autotuned songs like schmoyoho's Bed Intruder cut[4]. ### Is Viral Videos still popular? Clip sharing is a standing part of online culture; a 2010 Guardian piece reported YouTube at 120 million videos and 300 million accounts within five years of launch[1]. ## References 1. [https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2010/apr/11/youtube-web-video-stars]() 2. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vevo]() 3. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw]() 4. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/viral-videos]() 5. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KWKX71iX0ek]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/viral-videos Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library