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Saturday, December 25, 2010
To the fabulous, savvy audience that attended our
Video Sitemap webinar
several months ago, please accept our re-gift: a summary of your questions from the
Video Sitemaps Q&A!
To those who were unable to attend the webinar, please enjoy our gift of the summarized Q&A
—it's like new!
Either way, happy holidays from all of us on the Webmaster Central Team. :)
Our entire webinar covers the basics of Video Sitemaps and best practices—nearly
everything you'd need to know when submitting a video feed.
Can the source/content of the video (perhaps a third-party vendor) be hosted on another
site? For example, can I host my videos on YouTube and still be eligible for Video Search
traffic?
Yes, you can use a third party to host videos. Only the play page--the URL within the
<loc> tag--needs to be on your site.
<video:content_loc> and <video:player_loc> can list
URLs on a different site or subdomain.
For example, here's a snippet from a valid
Video Sitemap that shows content hosted on a different subdomain from the play page:
<url>
<loc>https://www.example.com/videos/some_video_landing_page.html</loc>
<video:video>
<video:thumbnail_loc>https://www.example.com/thumbs/123.jpg</video:thumbnail_loc>
<video:title>Grilling steaks for summer</video:title>
<video:description>Alkis shows you how to get perfectly done steaks every time</video:description>
<video:content_loc>https://video-hoster.example.com/video123.flv</video:content_loc>
<video:player_loc allow_embed="yes" autoplay="ap=1">https://www.example.com/videoplayer.swf?video=123</video:player_loc>
</video:video>
</url>
If I'm using YouTube to host my videos, can Google verify that I'm the legitimate owner?
Currently, there doesn't exist functionality that allows you, as the uploader, to verify that
you're the owner of a video. The issue of authorship is a hard problem on the web, not just
for videos, but nearly all types of content.
Because Google owns YouTube, should users who embed YouTube videos still submit Video
Sitemaps or is it unnecessary?
Google treats YouTube as just another source for video content—though you don't need to
submit a Video Sitemap if you only want your YouTube-hosted videos indexed. If, however,
you're using YouTube as a online video platform (that is, with play pages on your own site),
then we do recommend Sitemap submission.
How long does it take for Google to accept and verify a Video Sitemap?
Video Sitemap submission is a two-part process:
We fetch the Sitemap and parse it for syntax errors. This happens within minutes.
We fetch the assets referenced in the Sitemap, perform checks, validate metadata, do
more cool stuff, and last, index the video. This step can require varied amounts of time
depending on your site and our system load.
What tags and
categories
are most important in Video Sitemaps or mRSS? Should I create my own categories or is there
a list that I should conform to?
Currently, the most important metadata to include is title and description—both are
required. The category tag is optional, and there isn't a list from which to select.
Do I have to use HTML5 to
use Video Sitemaps?
Does HTML5 help with discovery?
Or, if my site is HTML5 compliant, do I still need to submit a Video Sitemap?
None of the Video Search principles change with HTML5. We still recommend using a Video
Sitemap regardless of the markup on your site. HTML5 can be helpful, though, because tags
like <video> make it easier for our systems to verify that video exists on
the page.
If I use an iframe rather than
embedding my videos, can Google still find it?
We do not recommend using iframes to embed video content on your pages.
Can I have multiple videos on one URL?
You can. We've found, however, that users may not consider it the best experience. When users
click on a video search result, they most often don't like being forced to locate the correct
video among multiple videos on the resulting page.
Do I need to specifically create a
robots.txt
file that allows Googlebot, or do I just need to make sure Googlebot isn't blocked?
Just make sure that Googlebot isn't blocked.
I provided a thumbnail, but it's not being used. Does Google create their own thumbnails
from my videos?
We try to use the thumbnail you provide
if it's valid. If not, we'll try to generate a thumbnail ourselves. We recommend that you
provide thumbnails that are at least 120x90 pixels. We also accept many thumbnail formats,
such as PNG and JPEG.
Any video filesize limitations?
At this time, there aren't video filesize limitations on content submitted through Video
Sitemaps.
Is there any way to indicate a transcript or closed captioning for a video?
Currently there isn't, but perhaps down the road.
What if I'm using Lightbox or a popup to display a video; can it still be indexed?
Depends on the use case and how it's rendered, but if indexing by search engines is important
to you, it's not the safest method. In the
documentation, we explain that "When
designing your site, it's important to configure your video pages without any overly complex
JavaScript or Flash setup." Most often, for bots, simpler is safer.
Have a safe and happy holiday!
Written by
Maile Ohye,
Developer Programs Tech Lead
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],[],[[["\u003cp\u003eSome information in this blog post may be outdated; refer to the up-to-date Video Sitemaps documentation for the latest information.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThis post summarizes a Q&A from a previous webinar on Video Sitemaps and best practices for submitting video feeds to Google.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eYou can host videos on a third-party platform like YouTube and still be eligible for Google Video Search traffic.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eGoogle treats YouTube as any other video source and recommends submitting a Video Sitemap if you're using it as your online video platform.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eWhile Google tries to use the thumbnail you provide, it's recommended to have thumbnails that are at least 120x90 pixels in PNG or JPEG format.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["This document summarizes a Q&A session about Video Sitemaps. Key information includes: third-party video hosting is allowed, but the play page must be on the site. Google treats YouTube as any other video source. Sitemap submission has two steps: parsing and asset fetching. The most important metadata are title and description. Using a video sitemap is recommended regardless of HTML5, but using iframes is not. Multiple videos on one URL is possible, but it's not recommended. There are no video file size limitations.\n"],null,["# Sending Video Sitemaps Q'n'A holiday cheer\n\n| It's been a while since we published this blog post. Some of the information may be outdated (for example, some images may be missing, and some links may not work anymore). Read the up-to-date [Video sitemaps documentation](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/video-sitemaps).\n\nSaturday, December 25, 2010\n\n\nTo the fabulous, savvy audience that attended our\n[Video Sitemap webinar](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kks0wPkX12I)\nseveral months ago, please accept our re-gift: a summary of your questions from the\n[Video Sitemaps](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/video-sitemaps) Q\\&A!\n\n\nTo those who were unable to attend the webinar, please enjoy our gift of the summarized Q\\&A\n---it's like new!\n\n\nEither way, happy holidays from all of us on the Webmaster Central Team. :) \n\n*Our entire webinar covers the basics of Video Sitemaps and best practices---nearly\neverything you'd need to know when submitting a video feed.*\n\n1.\n *Can the source/content of the video (perhaps a third-party vendor) be hosted on another\n site? For example, can I host my videos on YouTube and still be eligible for Video Search\n traffic?*\n\n\n Yes, you can use a third party to host videos. Only the play page--the URL within the\n `\u003cloc\u003e` tag--needs to be on your site.\n `\u003cvideo:content_loc\u003e` and `\u003cvideo:player_loc\u003e` can list\n URLs on a different site or subdomain. \n\n For example, here's a snippet from a valid\n Video Sitemap that shows content hosted on a different subdomain from the play page: \n\n ```\n \u003curl\u003e\n \u003cloc\u003ehttps://www.example.com/videos/some_video_landing_page.html\u003c/loc\u003e\n \u003cvideo:video\u003e\n \u003cvideo:thumbnail_loc\u003ehttps://www.example.com/thumbs/123.jpg\u003c/video:thumbnail_loc\u003e\n \u003cvideo:title\u003eGrilling steaks for summer\u003c/video:title\u003e\n \u003cvideo:description\u003eAlkis shows you how to get perfectly done steaks every time\u003c/video:description\u003e\n \u003cvideo:content_loc\u003ehttps://video-hoster.example.com/video123.flv\u003c/video:content_loc\u003e\n \u003cvideo:player_loc allow_embed=\"yes\" autoplay=\"ap=1\"\u003ehttps://www.example.com/videoplayer.swf?video=123\u003c/video:player_loc\u003e\n \u003c/video:video\u003e\n \u003c/url\u003e\n ```\n2.\n *If I'm using YouTube to host my videos, can Google verify that I'm the legitimate owner?*\n\n\n Currently, there doesn't exist functionality that allows you, as the uploader, to verify that\n you're the owner of a video. The issue of authorship is a hard problem on the web, not just\n for videos, but nearly all types of content.\n3.\n *Because Google owns YouTube, should users who embed YouTube videos still submit Video\n Sitemaps or is it unnecessary?*\n\n\n Google treats YouTube as just another source for video content---though you don't need to\n submit a Video Sitemap if you only want your YouTube-hosted videos indexed. If, however,\n you're using YouTube as a online video platform (that is, with play pages on your own site),\n then we do recommend Sitemap submission.\n4. *How long does it take for Google to accept and verify a Video Sitemap?*\n\n Video Sitemap submission is a two-part process:\n 1. We fetch the Sitemap and parse it for syntax errors. This happens within minutes.\n 2. We fetch the assets referenced in the Sitemap, perform checks, validate metadata, do more cool stuff, and last, index the video. This step can require varied amounts of time depending on your site and our system load.\n5.\n *What tags and\n [categories](/search/docs/appearance/video)\n are most important in Video Sitemaps or mRSS? Should I create my own categories or is there\n a list that I should conform to?*\n\n\n Currently, the most important metadata to include is title and description---both are\n required. The category tag is optional, and there isn't a list from which to select.\n6.\n *Do I have to use [HTML5](https://www.html5rocks.com/) to\n use Video Sitemaps?\n Does HTML5 help with discovery?\n Or, if my site is HTML5 compliant, do I still need to submit a Video Sitemap?*\n\n\n None of the Video Search principles change with HTML5. We still recommend using a Video\n Sitemap regardless of the markup on your site. HTML5 can be helpful, though, because tags\n like `\u003cvideo\u003e` make it easier for our systems to verify that video exists on\n the page.\n7.\n *If I use an [iframe](/search/docs/appearance/video) rather than\n embedding my videos, can Google still find it?*\n\n We do not recommend using iframes to embed video content on your pages.\n8. *Can I have multiple videos on one URL?*\n\n\n You can. We've found, however, that users may not consider it the best experience. When users\n click on a video search result, they most often don't like being forced to locate the correct\n video among multiple videos on the resulting page.\n9.\n *Do I need to specifically create a\n [robots.txt](/search/docs/crawling-indexing/robots/intro)\n file that allows Googlebot, or do I just need to make sure Googlebot isn't blocked?*\n\n Just make sure that Googlebot isn't blocked.\n10.\n *I provided a thumbnail, but it's not being used. Does Google create their own thumbnails\n from my videos?*\n\n\n We try to use the [thumbnail you provide](/search/docs/appearance/video)\n if it's valid. If not, we'll try to generate a thumbnail ourselves. We recommend that you\n provide thumbnails that are at least 120x90 pixels. We also accept many thumbnail formats,\n such as PNG and JPEG.\n11. *Any video filesize limitations?*\n\n\n At this time, there aren't video filesize limitations on content submitted through Video\n Sitemaps.\n12. *Is there any way to indicate a transcript or closed captioning for a video?*\n\n Currently there isn't, but perhaps down the road.\n13.\n *What if I'm using Lightbox or a popup to display a video; can it still be indexed?*\n\n\n Depends on the use case and how it's rendered, but if indexing by search engines is important\n to you, it's not the safest method. In the\n [documentation](/search/docs/appearance/video), we explain that \"When\n designing your site, it's important to configure your video pages without any overly complex\n JavaScript or Flash setup.\" Most often, for bots, simpler is safer.\n\nHave a safe and happy holiday!\n\n\nWritten by\n[Maile Ohye](/search/blog/authors/maile-ohye),\nDeveloper Programs Tech Lead"]]