Photobucket is quietly one of the 800-pound gorillas of photo sharing. First launched back in 2003, the nearly-10-year-old service boasts a staggering 100 million users, putting it in second place behind the picture sharing juggernaut, Facebook. As the demise of MySpace showed, however, the mantra for online services needs to constantly be “innovate or die”.
In an effort to stay hip in the crowded market of online photo sites, Photobucket has begun rolling out the first major redesign in its 10-year history.
The overhaul features a slick new look, faster uploading from various sources, and a new feature called Photobucket Stories.
Stories will be a new grouping for photographs that allow users to collaborate on documenting experiences. Users will be able to contribute photos and videos to the Stories, creating a thorough scrapbook-style page that preserves memories from a certain event (e.g. a vacation, a graduation, a new child).
Photobucket also wants to become your central repository for all your online photos and videos. New website features and desktop uploaders will make it easier for users to transfer photos from phones, cameras, computers, and even third-party websites.
Want to play around with the beta version? Try logging into your account to see if you’ve been granted access. If you don’t see a special link near the top of the page, then you’ll have to sit tight and wait until the update rolls out to you.
(via The Verge)
