YouTube is offering another proof of being adaptable, since it now offers a widescreen video format. This format will allow YouTube videos to be viewed on wide-screen flat panel monitors and TVs.

YouTube will display older videos in the original square 4:3 aspect ratio that they were first uploaded in, but most of the future clips are likely to be available in the widescreen format.

There is a growing trend of video viewership from computer monitors to TVs. Existing TV devices that are Internet enabled include the Apple TV and the TiVo personal video recorder.

Like its rival, Hulu.com, YouTube is also adding more high-definition content to address picture quality concerns. In recent months, Google has been adding YouTube “channels” from broadcasters that host both television shows and movies with supporting ads.