YouTube steps up advertising deals
By John Lister
YouTube is to attempt to raise revenues by allowing major media firms to sell their own advertising on their clips. The firms can even get cash from clips that have been illegally uploaded by users.
The site says CBS is already on board for the scheme, with other giants expected to join. The scheme will allow TV, movie and music companies to upload content and then sell advertising themselves, for example through images or animations which are overlaid on suitable sections of the clips. YouTube will then take a cut of this advertising revenue.
At the moment just 4 percent of clips on YouTube contain content belonging to advertising partners so, given how much copyrighted content is on the site, there’s clearly plenty of room to extend the scheme.
The biggest advantage of this system is that YouTube will get cash from advertisers who might not have otherwise opted to place ads on the site. For example, CBS could offer advertising spots on YouTube as part of a package deal which also includes traditional television commercials.
The firms will also be able to take advantage of YouTube’s Content ID system which attempts to identify copyrighted material which has been uploaded without permission. Firms taking part in the scheme can opt for such clips, rather than being taken offline as normal, to remain on the site but with advertising added. So far, 90 percent of firms given this choice have chosen to take the cash.
YouTube is also expanding its Click-To-Buy system where authorised music, TV or movie clips come with a button taking users directly to the appropriate page on sites such as Amazon or iTunes. The system is currently available in the United States and United Kingdom, but is being extended to Germany, Spain and the Netherlands. There’s no confirmation as to which retail sites will be linked to in these countries, though UK-based 7 Digital may be added to the scheme.
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January 22nd, 2009
>allowing major media firms to sell their own advertising on their clips
Wow, what a break through.
May 19th, 2009
Youtube will be in trouble sooner or later. A lot of copyrighted items are always found in parts or whole in youtube. The advertising deals is a step forward though.