Accompanying the sudden change of direction at Yahoo, many other high traffic Web sites are embracing do-it-yourself entertainment. Some are even offering their users incentives like cash prizes or a trip to New York.

For a while it seemed web designers were quickly evolving into TV “designers.” But then major portals began dropping plans to provide entertainment. Instead, sites are offering to merely provide tools for their visitors to make and propagate original content themselves.

Ifilm.com is a good indicator of where major media companies are seeing Web-based entertainment right now. The Web site, owned by media conglomerate Viacom, features short videos contributed by amateurs. Visitors to Ifilm can vote on their favorite clips and provide their own competing ones.

Web Design Jobs Make It to TV

In fact, (proving that synergy isn’t quite dead) Ifilm has teamed up with Viacom’s VH1 network in a cash prize competition, called “Show Us Your Junk.” The cross media partnership (with reward) has increased clip submissions to Ifilm considerably.

This is good news for Web designers who were probably wondering if their jobs were slowly being colonized by Hollywood content providers. With competitions like “Show Us your Junk,” it’s Web designers making an encroachment on TV.

Web Design Enables Home Entertainment

Ifilm is hardly the only Web designed, do-it-yourself entertainment exchange. Youtube.com operates similarly; inviting visitors to vote on posted content and contribute home made entertainment of their own.

This trend is encouraged even further by Hollywood content providers who are growing protective of their material. Increasingly, captured snippets of favorite TV moments are no longer free to roam on Ifilm and Youtube.

Web Design Career

The growth of Youtube or Ifilm shows that a Web design career can be more than just designing a site index or home page. Web design jobs are growing increasingly complex, and having a Web design degree or training in the field will help you to take advantage of the new trends on the Internet. Plus, it also helps to have some creativity to help you image the next best Web technology. Who knows what you may create in your Web design career.