You know an online video has gone viral when your mom is asking if you’ve seen it. And that’s exactly what happened to me this morning as the first thing my mom says to me is “Have you seen the Paris Hilton campaign video responding John McCain?”

Remarkably though, my answer was “no.” The video went live on Funny or Die just last night, but has already been viewed more than 3 million times, making it the 6th most popular video of all-time on Will Ferrell’s much-hyped (and heavily funded) video startup.

At this rate, Paris could challenge the video that first put the site on the map – The Landlord, which has been viewed more than 58 million times since being uploaded more than a year ago.

That’s good news for Funny or Die, which has failed to gain serious traction since its initial spike from The Landlord. Compete shows the site attracting 550,000 viewers in the US last month – down 34% from last year. Of course, many of the millions of views the Paris video is receiving won’t help the traffic numbers since they’ll be from embeds elsewhere, but it’s a huge opportunity for the site to regain some momentum, and that would be hot (I couldn’t resist).

Oh, and if you’re not quite sure what exactly Paris is responding to, the video actually is a parody of a commercial released by the McCain campaign that has been causing quite a stir on the cable news networks and talk radio over the past week. The video has since been pulled from YouTube (and a few other video sharing sites I tried), but if you have a working link to it add it in the comments so we can embed.

—Related Articles at Mashable! - The Social Networking Blog:Paris Hilton: Independent Video Content ProducerParis Hilton Videos Now on YouTubeDiddy Launches DiddyTV on YouTubePerez Hilton: The Mouse That RoaredYouTube Launches Comedian AccountsPrivate Zuckerberg and Paris Hilton Photos, Accessed on FacebookViacom Abandons “YouTube Killer”?

Source:Mashable!

Travel search site TripSay officially launches its public beta today, allowing anybody to register for an account and try out its service. As I mentioned in our previous coverage of TripSay’s private beta, the site’s distinction as a search and recommendation engine is important. While the previous private beta release included a handful of new social features, today’s public beta launch highlights a number of upgrades as well.

Most of the upgrades revolve around search filters and easy interactivity with TripSay’s service, including a World Builder that makes it easier for users to add places, rate locations and add their own tips. The new group filter allows you to sift through search results based on the number of people you’ll be traveling with, and a group message board makes for easier communication amongst users that will be traveling together.

Other features are more focused on the user experience and the creation of a customizable recommendation tool, with a new option for collecting your favorite tips in a private group, and the ability to edit existing tips and places you’ve already created on the site. If you had the opportunity to check out TripSay’s private beta, you’ll recognize the importance of many of these features in terms of its group capabilities, as group functionality within TripSay is central to the activity and recommendation options on the site.

As TripSay is one travel search and recommendation that is beginning to straddle the fence in terms of other sites that are distinctly created for professional or user-generated recommendations, I’ll be interested in seeing whatever developments come about as a result of the public beta launch and its included new features. TripSay could become one of the services that approaches a unique middle ground within the online travel search and recommendation industry.

TripSay company profile provided by TradeVibes

—Related Articles at Mashable! - The Social Networking Blog:TripSay Launches New Social Features for Private Beta [Invites]Google Social Graph API Spotted in the Wild: Plaxo Public ProfilesPownce Launch Party Tonight - Pownce to Exit Private BetaPownce To Launch Public APIMobile, Public Art Blogging, Wrapped Up in BigArtMobSocially Enabled Legal Documents?YouTube Germany Launches

TripSay is a new travel social network launching in private beta today that claims to "offer you less but more". The idea is to provide you with specific recommendations that are targeted to you and your needs. The company notes that they use a unique recommendation engine to proactively match destinations, places, sights, content, and activities for people across their network of friends as well as with those with similar tastes.

The signup process actually takes you through a variety of questions to help the system target what you might like. This is the first time I’ve seen a travel social network ask me background questions before entering the system. You can contribute content and earn points — I never really care for point collection, it’s lame.

There’s location information from WikiTravel and images from Flickr. Their Google Maps mashup is pretty interesting. The overall design is very slick and Ajaxy.

The main content seems to come from "tips" you can leave on the map about certain locations. This should tie into the mobile so tips popup as you get close to locations they have tips for. I don’t see a way to leave travel reports like Sosauce does.

The key of course with this and all other social networks is their ability to get users to signup and also remain as a user. Why should I stop using TripAdvisor’s community and move over to TripSay? The key is making sure my friends are here. TripSay looks like it could use a boost from Dopplr or Plazes so that we know where are friends are currently.

If you’d like a TripSay invite, send an email to: info@tripsay.com with the subject line, CenterNetworks.

Partner Links
– Free Online Budgeting Software