Two significant moves from YouTube this month point at how Google plan to effectively monetise the online video giant. Brand Republic report on a new deal with iTunes and Amazon which will see YouTube integrate “Click to buy” buttons directly into videos. Consumers will be able to move directly from a music video, for example, […]
Two significant moves from YouTube this month point at how Google plan to effectively monetise the online video giant. Brand Republic report on a new deal with iTunes and Amazon which will see YouTube integrate “Click to buy” buttons directly into videos. Consumers will be able to move directly from a music video, for example, to a store offering the mp3 track for sale. However, the initiative is not limited to music purchases – Electronic Arts will be using the programme to drive sales of its new game ‘Spore’. YouTube will receive a commission for each sale made through the process.
The second move, reported by Reuters, sees the firm offering full-length TV shows from the CBS archive, including “Star Trek” and “Beverly Hills 90210”. These will be available in the website’s new “Theatre View” format which fills the screen horizontally against a black background. In a first for YouTube, episodes will include pre-roll, mid-roll, post-roll and banner advertising as the site capitalises on the new content. Ads on the first wave of shows will be exclusively sold by CBS.
The plans follow news of the latest comScore figures which show that YouTube has overtaken Yahoo! as the second biggest internet search site in the US after Google.
Reuters: http://www.reuters.com, 10/10/2008
Brand Republic: http://www.brandrepublic.com, 08/10/2008
