How Are Viral Videos Spread?
Due to a combination of elements (from timelines to inherent humor to the manner in which the clip is distributed), certain video clips on the Web end up as "Viral Videos." The name is an allusion to the manner in which diseases spread--these videos, like a new strain of flu virus, start out being shared among a few people. But, also like the same flu virus, as each person who has been exposed to the video continues to pass a link to it along, the videos rack up view counts and end up viral-like phenomena.
Thanks to YouTube and other similar video sharing sites, it's become incredibly easy for a video to "go viral." The Evolution of The Dance is the perfect example, as it has over 120 million views and is the most viewed video on YouTube. Other notable YouTube Viral Videos include Leave Britney Alone and Chocolate Rain.
Though the rise in the spread of Viral Videos has been directly tied into the growth in prominence of the video sharing website YouTube, there are a few notable viral videos that pre-date YouTube's 2005 inception; those pre-YouTube videos include Numa Numa, The Star Wars Kid and All your base are belong to us (though the videos predate YouTube in their original format, the links given for all three are on YouTube).
While it is easier than ever for amateurs to spread their work to large audiences, no one knows exactly why certain videos "go viral" and others don't. What IS known is that once a video has gone viral, its popularity usually remains high. In an era where a passive Web viewer is inundated with thousands of pieces of content every day, a video with a very high view count seems to bear a stamp of approval that helps the video rise to the top of the endless heap of online videos.
Examples of Viral Videos
