Communications Technology

Salman Khan from California agreed to tutor his younger cousin, Nadia, in maths remotely using tablet technology.

“I thought these video lessons would be a good supplement. Nadia started improving significantly and more family wanted to see them, so I put them on YouTube. Others started to randomly access them and it just went from there.” says Khan.

Five years, 2000 video lessons, and 41 million views on YouTube later, Khan is on target for his mission of “providing a world-class education to anyone, anywhere” - with one faculty member.

Khan has university degrees in mathematics, computer science, electrical engineering, and an MBA from Harvard Business School - but no formal teaching qualifications.

Last year he caught the attention of Bill Gates (who uses the videos personally to “remind myself of things”, and for his children) and Google - who have provided funding, enabling Khan to leave his job as a hedge fund analyst and concentrate on the Khan Academy.

He now has a small team developing user-paced exercises “allowing the Khan Academy to become the free classroom for the world”.

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YouTube is launching a movie rental service in a partnership with Hollywood film giants including Sony and Warner Brothers, to rival Netflix and Apple’s iTunes.

The world’s most popular short-form video website will expand into streaming big-name, full-length blockbusters in May, according to reports. Under the premium movie-on-demand service, film lovers will be able to stream new releases for as little as $2, though prices will differ for each movie.

Three of the six major film studios - Sony Pictures Entertainment, Warner Brothers and Universal - have reportedly agreed licensing terms with the Google-owned video giant. Paramount, Fox and Disney have not yet committed to the plan, it is understood. The service is expected to be limited to the US for the foreseeable future.

A spokeswoman for YouTube declined to comment.

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Vodafone’s major network issues have inspired a parody music video that has today spread virally across the internet in a sign that the telco’s reputation may take some time to restore.

In what has been dubbed “Vodafail: the musical”, Scott Dawkins and Sheona Urquhart, who comprise the sketch comedy group TV Live On Stage, reworked Lady Gaga’s Telephone into an anti-Vodafone rant.

The clip has been spreading on social media today but it’s unclear how many views it has received as YouTube’s view counter has been stuck at 407 views for some time.

The Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) described the clip as a “brilliant piece of satire that perfectly reflects the very real frustration Vodafone customers have experienced over the past five months”.

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