Ok, the title of this post may be a bit dramatic, but the truth of the matter is that video on the internet is growing rapidly, and the affiliate marketers who are able to master video creation and advertising strategies will be much more prepared for the future of online advertising.

Just yesterday Hitwise came out with data that shows that UK internet traffic to online video websites increased by 172% between this February and February 2007. That’s 172%! The report goes on to say that in the UK one in every 45 visits was to an online video website. (You can get more details here).

As more and more people are watching video online, and as viewership and usage increases, so do the opportunities to advertise through and with video websites. As an affiliate marketer, you still have the opportunity to be a first-mover getting into the online video advertising world.

Admittedly, at this point video advertising seems to be more of a branding move for more traditional advertisers, versus a direct response channel (see this article for proof). But as Google continues to struggle to monetize sites like YouTube, I think they will do whatever they can to make advertising more viable for all types of marketers, including performance marketers.

Outside of YouTube, Google is still trying to figure out how to make video AdSense ads work for both their advertisers and publishers. As video becomes a more accepted form of media on the web, more people will be willing to click on these video ads, and more publishers will be willing to run them on their sites.

If I were you, I’d take some time and start learning more about the online video advertising world. I think that the affiliates who get it will be the ones most likely to profit from it as this market develops.

And believe me, this market will develop.