Video viewing fact: 20% of people click away from videos in the first 15 seconds. But Kookloo, a new Denver/LA startup, hopes to hold our attention by augmenting any video with a proprietary timed comment feature that allows indexed pop chat micro-comments® anchored to specific points in the video. It’s like Periscope’s and SoundCloud’s timed commenting system but for video. Kookloo comments boldly popstream® overlay directly on the video content so they’re a lot more visible than traditional, YouTube-style comments buried at the bottom. Remember that old VH1 show Pop-Up Video? It took tired music videos and made them interesting again by overlaying little bits of related trivia. Similarly, Kookloo hopes people will stay focused on or even rewatch clips that its users publish thanks to commentary like “OMG this is the best part”, or “No one could have survived that”.
Kookloo, 100% free to use and join, could also make videos more sharable. When people leave comments they can easily syndicate them along with the video to Facebook and Twitter. Users can search for comments by keyword, while moderators can use backend tools to keep out trolls and spammers. By getting users to attach comments to videos, they’re actually helping Kookloo recognize the content in the video. This metadata lets it aid video publishers with delivering more targeted advertising. Granted some video content creators may be apprehensive about serving up an unfamiliar interface to their viewers. But if Kookloo gains traction, its timed comments could make it feel like you’re watching videos in a giant living room with the whole Internet.
