[bakuninsbart]

It is a one-syllable word, easy to pronounce in many languages, quite distinct from other words and brands, and can easily be turned into a verb.

[rhubarbtree]

Why does that make it a good name for video in particular?

[andylynch]

Cameras often have zoom lenses for close ups.

Fits great with the idea of bringing people together with video.

[racked]

Why does it have to be -- ever "googled" something? ;-)

[Hobadee]

Verbing your nouns is a great way to lose your trademark.

[Talanes]

Are there any actual recent examples of this? The major examples I've always heard are solidly in the 20th century. It's not like Google has had any problem holding their trademark.

[Hobadee]

Kleenex and Xerox were both (somewhat) recently in danger of loosing theirs. They both pulled pretty big campaigns to un-verb their trademarks. Google still has a bunch of other products that people are familiar with, so they are in less danger of loosing theirs right now, but give it some time (like 50 years, not 10) and it may happen, especially if they get broken up for being a monopoly. (Which has been mentioned)

[Talanes]

I'm usually a big proponent of longer-term corporate thinking, but deciding your name around problems you might have five decades after becoming a household name is a little much.

[DiggyJohnson]

When they came up with it that would be a best case scenario.