Can traditional media companies just leap in and produce for the more “snack culture” space of Internet TV? Is user-generated content the wave of the future? Will movies and television shows come to your house through streaming, peer-to-peer, or in a DVD mailer envelope? This is not a good time to be in the crystal-ball-gazing business.

The Associated Press (AP) recently announced it will be terminating its ASAP project. ASAP was targeted for younger people–more Web friendly and blogger ready–but there just wasn’t enough “there” there. HBO is shuttering its content pipeline project, This Just In, for similar reasons. In both of these plays, the premise was that the “young hip” crowd would swarm in and take advantage of the B content on these sites, and that buzz would follow. Not so much.

User-generated content (UGC) seems to be at a strange crossroads. Studios are watching Michael Eisner’s work with Chris Hempel’s team on Prom Queen to see if there isn’t perhaps a new method for using less expensive production to possibly serve as a runway for future projects. And while Hollywood and Madison Avenue are both salivating about lower cost production, mainstream stars like Will Farrell are creating projects like Funny or Die to grab more screen time and produce simpler pieces.

In the year of the YouTube presidency, this season has already seen YouTube used as an alternative platform for the Democratic Party debates. But political blogs are stating that the Republican version of the debates isn’t as eager to use YouTube as an open platform to hear the “voice of the people.” This raises a different question for people seeking answers to business questions in Internet video: Is YouTube making more sense, or is it still an unknown commodity?

Several dozen new variations on the theme are opening on the Internet daily, such as the interesting multi-platform Kyte.TV that allows users to create movies, pictures, slideshows, and polls, and play them on blogs, MySpace, and even mobile phones. High-definition streaming product Joost might want to watch out for Paul Yanez, who reports he’s created a flash version of Joost that will run in any Web browser. And as Veoh goes into a new venture with VeohTV as its “10-foot experience” solution instead of its previous variation as a YouTube-like product, what are they signaling? How are hosts like Brightcove, Revver, and Blip.tv viewing this world?

Newspapers are escaping online, and some like the Washington Post are winning Emmys, while at the same time Fortune magazine is asking how these papers can survive? How does the Internet impact print news, especially when these properties come out with video products to enhance the subscriber experience?

Traditional media companies are seeking distribution, some through lockeddown channels, and others like Les Moonves are taking the “get it out everywhere” method. Local TV affiliates are wondering where all this Internet distribution leaves them. If you can watch prime-time shows online with fewer ads, why watch through an affiliate? But if that’s true, what will local TV networks do to reclaim revenue? What will the right mix of distribution be for media companies, and how will networks compete?

Advertising is changing. H.J. Heinz Company is just one of many companies putting the creative burden on users and paying the winners for their efforts. If one considers the cost of a professionally produced commercial versus the prize money for a contest, why wouldn’t all products open their ad opportunities to user-generated production? But then GMC learned the hard way what can happen when that isn’t done properly.

There are no safe bets. Investors are seeing dozens of companies offering video hosting, tacking on a social network, and swearing that they have the silver-bullet solution that will drive millions of viewers to their site. That doesn’t work? Let’s add widgets! They’re not as willing to buy that story any longer. Instead, investors are stepping back and looking for trends and portents. Who sees the curve in the road ahead, and does it go up or down?

In the year since Video on the Net took place in Boston in the fall of 2006, more questions have been raised than answers given. Companies are still spending heavily in this space–even as profits waver, audiences shift, and investors question their next moves. Will the end of 2007 signal the end of some of these possible futures for Internet TV?

Chris Brogan is Community Developer for the Video on the Net conference. He is cofounder of the PodCamp unconference series, and blogs at chrisbrogan.com.