As we've written about continually for the past couple of months, the number of companies launching into the digital video space is astounding. From Amazon to AOL Video to 20th Century Fox, as well as MSN Video and YouTube's video capabilities, the market is proving able to sustain several business models at this point, with some rolling out ad-supported content, while others are offering pay-for-download services. Some services--like CBS' innertube and TNT's DramaVision--are providing content for particular networks.

Google has been another major name in the video distribution competition, and the well-known Internet company is poised to have pervasive reach in creating new and innovative ways to distribute and market video content.

But this week's news is that Google Chief Executive Officer Eric Schmidt will be the newest member on Apple's Board of Directors, making an interesting link between two of the biggest companies in the online video distribution competition.

Does this really amount to anything substantial, as far as altering the race to downloading? Not at this point, but the link between Apple and Google could make for an interesting atmosphere as competition heats up when all these services are up and running full-force.