Today’s Contentinople announced that the video/multimedia platform, CONVIVA, received a $20M B Round funding. See the article by Contentinople writer, Ryan Lawler.

According to the article, Conviva received the funding to “target broadcasters and sports leagues that want to broadcast live video on the Internet” with “a brand new and built from the ground up” platform for live web video delivery. This is important news for digital distribution. It demonstrates significant movement in the henceforth slow-to-market aim to make the Internet the central vehicle for complex media access.

YOUTUBE continues to actualize the digital multimedia/video revolution that has been long-coming, and about which Mitra Creative’s team has been aware for many years.

Many of the current innovations in the communications applications and true socialization of video and other rich media were pioneered some two decades ago in incubation centers like the MIT Media Lab (now “The Media Lab”), the NYU Tisch School of the Arts and many more. Our team observed the budding of this revolution and deeply respect the empowerment in this regard that came from the visionary YouTube.

In an article published today, YouTube has taken a step that those of us in the digital/interactive space, as well as in the filmmaking, multimedia software development and other spaces had eagerly awaited and hoped for. The “video sharing site” (that’s what people call YouTube, though it is clearly much more) has just introduced a dedicated “channel”, called a “Screening Room” for Independent Filmmakers. Read the AP/Yahoo! article about the new YouTube Indie Film Screening Room by writer, Ryan Nakashima.

This is a very important step. It means the loosening of the controls that have been a stronghold on creating, distributing and socializing some of the most important of all media. Independent films, for example, took home the largest number of Academy Awards® in the 2007 ceremonies (2006 films). YouTube’s move better enables the “voice” of independent film production.

We are excited!

VISIT THE YOUTUBE INDEPENDENT FILM SCREENING ROOM: http://www.youtube.com/ytscreeningroom.