Rebecca Black, Cone-ing and Gotye: 2011 in review on YouTube

YouTube contains the largest and most diverse set of videos ever assembled, but in amongst the one trillion playbacks on YouTube this year, there are some videos that draw us all together. These videos capture the imagination as we watch them over and over and share them with our friends and family.

Today we reveal the top 10 videos watched by Australians on YouTube. The lists show that we were obsessed with Australian musician Gotye as his song became second most watched music video in 2011. Aussies were quite diverse with their musical tastes as Nicki Minaj, Katy Perry, Bruno Mars and Jennifer Lopez also made the cut.

Rebecca Black and her song Friday became a viral sensation over the year ensuring her song took out top spot for most watched YouTube community video in Australia this year.

A Melbourne prank called “cone-ing”, which involves ordering a soft serve cone at a fast food restaurant’s drive-through and then grabbing hold of the ice cream upside down, was amongst the most watched YouTube Community videos. Showing how YouTube can be the incubator of Aussie talent, Alki Stevens, the person behind the video has given up his day job to concentrate on his comedy career and YouTube Channel.

Also making the list: a short video by Network Ten in which a newsreader responds to an on-air comment about how “something so small can be so impressive”. Labelled “an awkward moment” the YouTube video has been watched more than 7 million times globally.

Australians also came to YouTube to keep informed on the latest news events. The top searches reveal we came online to find footage of the floods in Toowoomba and about Osama bin Laden’s death.

Bizarrely, Aussies were amongst some of the 52 million people who watched “Nyan Cat”, an animated video of a cat propelled across the sky by a rainbow.

To see more of the year’s most popular and influential YouTube videos from across the world, visit youtube.com/rewind.  And for more lists, see YouTube Trends and the YouTube blog.

Most Watched YouTube community videos in Australia:

1. Rebecca Black - Friday (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
2. Ultimate Dog Tease
3. An Awkward Moment
4. Jack Sparrow (feat. Michael Bolton)
5. Songify This - Winning - a Song by Charlie Sheen
6. Nyan Cat [original]
7. The Creep (feat. Nicki Minaj & John Waters)
8. Nice Guys
9. CONE-ING IS THE NEW PLANKING!!!!! (AlkiStevens)
10. Nicki Minaj - Super Bass By Sophia Grace Brownlee

Most Watched music videos on YouTube in Australia:

1. LMFAO - Party Rock Anthem ft. Lauren Bennett, GoonRock
2. Gotye - Somebody That I Used To Know (feat. Kimbra)
3. Nicki Minaj - Super Bass
4. Jennifer Lopez - On The Floor ft. Pitbull
5. LMFAO - Sexy and I Know It
6. Bruno Mars - The Lazy Song [Official Video]
7. Jessie J - Price Tag ft. B.o.B.
8. Katy Perry - Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)
9. Adele - ''Someone Like You''
10. LMFAO - Champagne Showers ft. Natalia Kills

Fastest Rising search terms on YouTube by month in Australia

January	toowoomba
February	born this way
March	friday rebecca black
April	party rock anthem
May	bin laden
June	e3
July	moves like jagger
August	it girl
September	stereo hearts
October	mistletoe
November	skyrim
December	christmas songs

Posted by Johnny Luu, Communications and Public Affairs Manager, Google Australia

What we’ve learned while Getting 27,000 Aussie Businesses Online

When Getting Aussie Business Online launched in March of this year in partnership with MYOB, our goal was to help 50,000 businesses get a free website. Now we’re over halfway there and happy to see that more than 27,000 businesses the likes of Cakes by Nadia, Shoalbay Sportsfishing Tours and Friends’ Cafe have come online and are reaching customers like never before.

We’ve also learned a few things along the way about the business owners that have signed up. First we found out more about who they are: the majority of businesses were either sole traders or small businesses with less than 5 employees. We also noticed that these businesses were likely to be relatively new, with over 50% having been founded within the last two years.


We also learned where they were. Using Google Fusion Tables we plotted the 27,000 businesses on the map and saw that they had signed up in geographical clusters. For example, in Bendigo there are 22 businesses that have come online, and they’re all within 6km of each other. This could either mean that businesses close to each other are directly spreading the word about being online or it could mean that they’re aware of the activities of neighbouring businesses and are trying to keep up with the competition.

For instance, Dallas Hall in Bendigo set up a website for his business Cornerstone Landscaping this year. A sole trader, he says, “We found the website really effective and we now have a good hit rate and clients are finding us. The site is easy and straightforward to do -- it took me 10 minutes to get online. People can see from the map that we’re located in Bendigo and we get around 5 to 6 phone calls a week from people who have seen our website.”

Next year we’ll continue to help businesses get a free online presence and to spread the word that getting a website doesn’t have to be difficult.

Posted by Richard Flanagan, Head of SMB Marketing, Google Australia

Experience the tsunami-affected areas of Japan through Street View

Back in July, we announced our initiative to digitally archive the areas of Northeastern Japan affected by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Today, we’re making good on that promise—after driving more than 44,000 kilometers through the affected regions, 360-degree panoramic imagery of those areas is now available through the Street View feature in Google Maps. The images can also be viewed via a special website called “Build the Memory,” where you can easily compare before and after shots of the towns changed by these events.

A virtual tour via Street View profoundly illustrates how much these natural disasters have transformed these communities. If you start inland and venture out toward the coast, you’ll see the idyllic countryside change dramatically, becoming cluttered with mountains of rubble and debris as you get closer to the ocean. In the cities, buildings that once stood proud are now empty spaces.

View Larger Map

In the bottom left corner of each image you’ll also see a month and year that tells you when a particular photograph was taken. When looking at images of the magnificent cities side-by-side with images of the ruins left in their place, this additional context demonstrates how truly life-changing this tragedy has been for those who live there and witnessed the destruction of their homes, neighborhoods and even entire districts. This timestamp feature has been the most requested Street View feature for the last few years, and it is now available on Street View imagery worldwide. Professionals such as historians, architects, city planners and tourism boards—as well as regular users including travelers and home-buyers—can now get a sense of how fresh the online photos are for a locations that interests them.

In the case of the post-tsunami imagery of Japan, we hope this particular digital archiving project will be useful to researchers and scientists who study the effects of natural disasters. We also believe that the imagery is a useful tool for anyone around the world who wants to better understand the extent of the damage. Seeing the street-level imagery of the affected areas puts the plight of these communities into perspective and ensures that the memories of the disaster remain relevant and tangible for future generations.

(Cross-posted on the Lat Long blog)

Posted by Kei Kawai, Senior Product Manager, Street View

Exploring ancient ruins in 3D with Google Earth

(Cross-posted on the Inside Search Blog)


Searches can become stories. Some inspire us, others change the way we see the world or just make us smile. This is the latest in a series of videos about people who have used Google to discover or do something extraordinary. 


The field of archaeology has changed much over the years. New modes of transportation have made even the most remote sites accessible, while cameras simplify how a historical record is created and shared with the world. 


Spurred on by these innovations, researchers are also embracing technology as a creative way to aid their research and explore ancient sites. To conduct archaeological studies in the Middle East, Professor David Kennedy of the University of Western Australia turned to Google Earth.


From his office chair in Perth, Professor Kennedy has remotely identified thousands of archaeological sites without having to step foot on Saudi Arabian or Yemeni soil. Historically it has been difficult to undertake ground surveys and aerial photographs of these areas are seldom available for research, making the countries some of the least explored archaeologically. By carefully studying satellite imagery of the Arabian peninsula in Google Earth, Professor Kennedy has unearthed an enormous record of archaeological sites, from ancient geoglyphs to stone Wheels to Pendant-shaped tombs and animal traps called kites that could be up to 9,000 years old.


Watch Professor Kennedy’s Search Story video to see how Google Earth aided his search for these ancient sites across the Middle East. 







Professor Kennedy isn’t the only archaeologist to discover the potential in using satellite imagery to aid traditional field methods. Visit www.OneWorldManyStories.com to discover how the scientific community has used Google Earth to uncover ancient relics, find a new hominid ancestor, identify hidden forests, and put craters on the map.


Do you have a great Google Earth story? Share it with us.


Posted by Vicky Homan, Google Earth Product Marketing

“Wineweekplus” on Google+

In the last few weeks, I’ve found a lot of interesting people talking and sharing about wine on Google+. I spotted a blogpost about what it really takes to be a sommelier, I’ve found loads of video interviews with winemakers, and I’ve seen stunning photography that makes me want to book my next trip to the McLaren Vale right now.  Google+ is also how I found +Stewart Noble from +Wine Without BS.  I met up with Stewart and we hit upon the idea of creating a whole week of wine-related activities on Google+ that would make it easy for people in Australia (and anywhere, really) who love wine to find each other.

So we’ve declared the week of December 12 to be “wineweekplus” on Google+, and we’d love for anyone who loves wine, talking about wine, or learning about wine to join us.  Here’s how you can get involved:

• share circles of great people and pages you find talking about wine (here are some)
• host your own Hangout -- a group video chat for up to 10 people
• create posts that are designed for conversation, like “here are my tips for getting the best out of a sommelier...what are yours?” or “here’s what I’m drinking this Christmas...what am I missing?”
• keep an eye on this schedule of events.  we’ll be updating it regularly as we hear about more people planning to do hangouts or Q&A sessions on their pages at certain times. to tell us about your “event”, fill in this form, or drop us a message on Google+.  

To get you inspired, we already have a few events on the schedule:

• A hangout about food & wine matching with +Ryn & Cordie
• All about the McLaren Vale with +Damien Smith of +Chapel Hill Winery
• Best wine for Christmas with +Lisa Johnston of +WineMuse
• A hangout about international wines and how to navigate a wine list with +Stewart Noble from +Wine Without BS

Here in Sydney, we Googlers are going to be doing some wine tasting this afternoon, and you can join us for the fun via Google+.  Visit +Google Australia at 5pm EDT to join our Hangout.

You may also have seen that today we announced the lists of the hottest search terms on Google in Australia in 2011.  Want to know what search trends reveal about our taste in wine?


Shiraz is roughly three times more popular than cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir, and sauvignon blanc in Australia.  And not surprisingly, we conduct the most wine related searches in the run-up to Christmas -- just in time for #wineweekplus.  

Posted by +Courtney Hohne, Google Communications and pinot noir lover

A Year of Curiosities: Australia’s Top Google Searches 2011

Today we’re releasing our annual Zeitgeist lists: this year’s hottest search terms on google.com.au. These lists offer a unique glimpse into the big events, memorable moments and emerging trends that captivated Aussies throughout 2011.

Topping the list of fastest rising search queries - those that saw a spike in interest in 2011 - were the rumoured iPhone 5, Cyclone Yasi, the video game Minecraft, planking and British songstress Adele.



Our love affair with cooking shows and celebrity chefs also influenced our search queries this year, with red velvet cupcakes, macaroons and pork belly among the Top 10 most popular food searches.  “Cake pops” popped onto the food list this year at number 2 -- if you’re wondering, they’re little balls of cake, frosted and decorated and popped on a stick.



Among the top news searches were world-captivating events in Libya and Japan, right alongside Justin Bieber, Charlie Sheen, and Qantas. We also saw YouTube on the list of top news searches, which could be due to the number of breaking news events being recorded on smartphones and uploaded to the web.  



What questions did we ask Google this year?  We asked “what is love” as well as “what is culture” and “what is globalisation”. We also asked for DIY help with wedding invitations, computers, and solar panels as well as the definition of justice and ethics.  



We looked for travel ideas, with many locations in Queensland retaining their popularity after the state took a beating from the weather; Hamilton Island tops the list.  We searched for jobs, with “government jobs” and “mining jobs” competing for the most popular search in various states; there was also a big spike this year in searches for “ethical jobs”.  And if you were asking Google about cosmetic surgery options, you weren’t alone; apparently otoplasty -- plastic surgery of the ear -- is getting quite popular.  



Here are our top search terms in Australia for 2011 -- we’ll be posting our global search terms next week, and we’ll tweet and post on Google+ to let you know!

Fastest rising searches 1. iPhone 5 2. Minecraft 3. cyclone yasi 4. planking 5. Adele 6. angry boys 7. royal wedding 8. rugby world cup 9. iPhone 4s 10. Rebecca black	Top food searches 1. red velvet cupcakes 2. cake pops 3. macaroon 4. massaman curry 5. anzac biscuits 6. pork belly 7. quinoa 8. pizza 9. ice cream sundae 10. scrambled eggs
Top celebrity death searches 1. Amy Winehouse 2. Ryan Dunn 3. Osama bin Laden 4. Princess Diana 5. Steve Jobs 6. Zyzz 7. Marco Simoncelli 8. Hugh Hefner 9. Elizabeth Taylor 10. Jackie Chan	Fastest rising news searches 1. iPhone 5 2. Libya 3. Cyclone Yasi 4. youtube 5. Japan 6. Super Rugby 7. Qantas 8. Charlie Sheen 9. Justin Bieber 10. Facebook
Top searches for “what is?” 1. what is love? 2. what is energy? 3. what is planking? 4. what is culture? 5. what is electricity? 6. what is ph? 7. what is depression? 8. what is java? 9. what is globalisation?	Top DIY searches 1. wedding invitations 2. computer 3. solar panels 4. kitchen 5. superannuation 6. fencing 7. baby 8. painting 9. tiles 10. wardrobes
Fastest rising cosmetic surgery searches 1. Australian Society of Plastic Surgeons 2. My Free Implants 3. Cellulite Cream 4. Thailand breast implants 5. Double eyelid surgery 6. Otoplasty 7. Dermal Fillers 8. Botox 9. Liposuction 10. Varicose veins	Fastest rising shopping searches 1. ASOS 2. Costco 3. Zara 4. Manheim 5. Vans 6. eBay America 7. Victoria’s Secret 8. eBay Australia 9. etsy 10. Lorna Jane
Top movie searches 1. breaking dawn 2. dogma 3. final destination 5 4. spy kids 4 5. paul 6. red dog 7. the secret circle 8. mean girls 2 9. true grit 10. tangled	Top travel destination 1. Hamilton Island 2. Hawaii 3. Byron Bay 4. Blue Mountains 5. Port Douglas 6. Hayman Island 7. Great Barrier Reef 8. Uluru 9. New York 10. Las Vegas

Posted by Johnny Luu, Public Affairs and Communications Manager, Google Australia