For those of you who may be interested in setting up a niche video website based on the Youtube video sharing Social Media model - there are plenty of php scripts out there that will basically allow you to easily setup a Youtube clone website. I have worked with a lot of them - specifically the top popular ones, and this post is a brief review of video sharing scripts. These scripts can be installed on solo websites or within a sub-domain or folder within your current existing website. While there are now plenty of Video Share scripts out their (many of them just re-writes and refurbished clones of original ones), the scripts I review below are the ones that are on the top of the list.
PHPmotion - This is a free, opensource script and a good startig point if you do not have the money, but would like to experiment to see what kind of traffic your video niche portal can attract. I would not recommend it to anyone who is serious. It works well, but the design templates and the functionality is not that great. But, if you are on a shoestring budget and all you want to do is throw up something quickly and cheap - you can try this. Score: 7/10
Clip-Share - One of the initial players in this space. Has amazing graphical and layout templates that can be purchased in addition to the 4 basic templates that come pre-packaged. This is a solid script and a highly recommended choice for the serious. They sell 2 different versions - a Lite version at $99 and a Pro version at $199. You can purchase additional Web2.0 look-and-feel design template for $100 each. The template files can easily be customized as you wish. I had no problem whatsoever with their support and they were prompt to answer and get back to me with solutions to the problems I faced. If you have the budget go for this one. Recently GodTube.com that uses their script gota funding round of $30 million. Score: 9/10
Rayyz.net - This script is not just for video sharing. It is a complete Social Media website that has has video, photo, music, files, articles, games, blogs and community networking built into the dash board. If you’re looking for a more than just video and a full fledged script of Social Networking around various media - then take a look at this script. Athough, I have not personally tested this script or worked with it - it seems to be alright. the price is a bit steep at $418. If you are serious about setting up a Social Netowrking site around media sharing content, it would be better if you installed Boonex (which has a free version). However, dont strike out Rayzz from your list - as it is quite powerful in its own way (it focuses more on the Social Media sharing tools and aspect than the Social Networking aspect, which is what Boonex does). Score 6.5/10
Attachmax - This script will allow users to download the videos in addition to viewing them streamed. The script comes with a basic database of videos so you can have pre-populated content on your site. While the layout and graphic design may suit some people, I thought the script was pretty average and not too focused. At $$ , this may be a good buy to some of you. Score: 6/10
Alstrasoft Video Share Enterprise - Stay far far away from this one. Its got holes in it and the people behind it have a very bad reputation. I don’t want to bash them too much, but just do a search on Google with their name and you will see what other disgruntled people are saying on various forums. At $300 this is a complete waste of money (even though I would not pay even $10 for it). You have been warned! Score: 0/10
MediaMax Script - This script is a recent re-branding of Video Watch Pro. They have videos, pitcure, audio and social networking too - built into this script. The site and demo looks pretty impressive at $299 and they even have a Google Adsense flash video integration - which will allow you to earn more money within the flahs player. I have read elsewhere that their customer service is not up to mark - but this is not from a confirmed source. I think - you are good to go if you like their look and feel and functionality. Quite impressive. Score: 8/10
VShare - This is the script with the highest value-for-money at $10 !! The features are very advanced and their are plenty of them. I was quite taken by surprise to see the amount of features this script had packed into it - such as, alternate video server uploading, youtube direct embedding etc. The only drawback was the graphical template… it looked a bit ordinary. So, if you have the time and resources to alter template files - then i recommend this script highly. Although there are a few vendors on their site forums who are selling laternate templates, I am yet to see one which is “professional looking”. Also, I’d like to point out that their support and forums are extremely good and I got answers very quickly. Install this script if you have the ability to dabble around with the template and improve its basic look. Score: 9/10
osTube - This script is a media sharing model and offers Video, Photo, Audio, Documents, Community and Blogs. The pre-packaged templates look quite impressive and the functionality and video player look good. I don’t have any idea what it costs - but you should test drive their free version, which has limited features, before you buy their paid versions. They are definitely the most impressive “media sharing” scripts out their from what I can see. May not have as many functions as Rayzz (above), but definitely a better and sleeker dashboard - although I dont know how the engine is under the hood. On what i’ve seen and assuming this script works well, I give them - Score: 8/10
PHPmelody - If you’re looking to setup a Music Videos website, then this is script is fantastic. It does not allow you and your visitors to directly upload videos to the site - but one can embed videos from Youtube - which is a fantastic feature, as not only does it save bandwidth and server resources but it also allows you to quickly add content. They also have a neat “keyword” based search that the admin can use to find videos on Youtube and add them with one click! The script comes pre-packaged with thousands of pre-populated music videos - if you want to get content included right away. A breeze to install, and definitely worth the price at $39 with additional layout templates at $10 to $19. Support is excellent and prompt. Score: 10/10 if you are creating a Music Video website.
*added later* - VidiScript - I added this one later as I read about it in a forum. The script is free, and it looked pretty decent (front end) - with ability to show pre-roll ads, insert text banner ads inside video player, a decent flash player, and two not-so-good light and dark templates (that can always be improved by you). VidiScript not only supports Videos, but now also supports Audio, Photo and Flash Game uploads. I dont know how stable this script is and how it will hold up for a busy site, but… hey… its free! and so definitely worth a try. Score: 8/10 (based on what I saw in the front end demo)
Conclusion: I suggest that you pick and choose from the scripts above and if you are selecting one not listed above you do your homework well - as their are many clones and copies of pre-existing scripts out their with holes in them. Start doing your research on this page of hotscripts.com - that lists a whole bunch of media sharing php scripts, and also make sure you visit forums such as Programming Talk to read reviews posted by other customers.
Added Later: Take a look at Clip-Bucket too. Its free and open sourced. I am not sure how secure it is and how it performs when measured up with the scripts above, as I had a quick look at the front end, but did not install it or use it on a site of my own. I must say for free price, the templates, the player the look and feel are HIGHLY professional and the folks behind it have done a great job in making a very neat user interface and front end. By the looks of it - this is going to be a killer video sharing script … and will probably put behind vhsare and phpmotion - if the backend lives up to the quality of the front end. I can’t wait to install this on a site and see how it performs. Check back here in about 2 weeks to see my feedback, or simply leave a comment and subscribe to this post via email.
Also, take a look at this upcoming neat mass video populator, that claims that it will allow you to mass populate and add videos to your video site (all scripts above are supported), in a few clicks. The price, I believe is the only downside as they have gone in for a bulk pricing, which works out to around 10 cents a video - steep I thought, for someone who wants to add say 1000 videos. Its a web based remote service.
A nother new script - VideoWatchPro is not great, and scores around 5/10, from a brief look. I havent seen it in depth - but it doesn’t look to be anything worth spending more time on.
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