# Using schema.org markup for videos

> [!IMPORTANT]
> 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 Some of the information may be outdated (for example, some images may be missing, and some links may not work anymore). Check out our [documentation about video best practices](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/video).

Tuesday, February 21, 2012


Videos are one of the most common types of results on Google and we want to make sure that your
videos get indexed. Today, we're also launching video support for schema.org.
[Schema.org](https://schema.org/) is a joint effort between
Google, Microsoft, Yahoo! and Yandex and is now the recommended way to describe videos on the web.
The markup is very simple and can be easily added to most websites.


Adding [schema.org video markup](https://schema.org/VideoObject)
is just like adding any other schema.org data. Simply define an `itemscope`, an
`itemtype="https://schema.org/VideoObject"`, and make sure to set the `name`,
`description`, and `thumbnailUrl` properties. You'll also need either the
`embedURL`---the location of the video player---or the
`contentURL`---the location of the video file. A typical video player with markup
might look like this:

```
<div itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/VideoObject">
<h2>Video: <span itemprop="name">Title</span></h2>
<meta itemprop="duration" content="T1M33S" />
<meta itemprop="thumbnailUrl" content="thumbnail.jpg" />
<meta itemprop="embedURL"
content="https://www.example.com/videoplayer.swf?video=123" />
<object ...>
<embed type="application/x-shockwave-flash" ...>
</object>
<span itemprop="description">Video description</span>
</div>
```


Using schema.org markup will not affect any
[Video Sitemaps](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/video-sitemaps) or
[mRSS feeds](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/crawling-indexing/sitemaps/video-sitemaps#sitemap_alternatives)
you're already using. In fact, we still recommend that you also use a Video Sitemap because it
alerts us of any new or updated videos faster and provides advanced functionality such as country
and platform restrictions.


Since this means that there are now a number of ways to tell Google about your videos, choosing
the right format can seem difficult. In order to make the video indexing process as easy as
possible, we've put together a series of videos and articles about video indexing in our new
Webmasters EDU microsite.


For more information, you can go through the
[Webmasters EDU video articles](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/video),
read the full
[schema.org VideoObject specification](https://schema.org/VideoObject),
or ask questions in the
[Webmaster Help Forum](https://support.google.com/webmasters/community/label?lid=3db4effde15c5be6&hl=en).
We look forward to seeing more of your video content in Google Search.


Posted by
[Henry Zhang](https://plus.google.com/110923955128198892585/about),
Product Manager