Google is shaking up the online video industry today with a pair of high-profile partnership announcements, coupled with growing intensity regarding its rumored purchase of YouTube.com.
The search giant started off the day with a today with an announcement of plans for a strategic business relationship with Sony BMG Music Entertainment, designed to make the music company's expansive music video collection available for online streaming at no cost to users. Starting this month, users can watch thousands of Sony music videos on Google Video for free.
"Google is a defining force in the ongoing development of the Internet, and we're extremely pleased to be expanding our video relationship with them," commented Thomas Hesse, President, Global Digital Business, Sony BMG. "We see this agreement as an important part of our overall strategy to innovate, find new ways for our artists to connect with their fans, and develop new revenue streams. We look forward to working closely with Google as we roll out this ambitious new effort."
Sony will be able to monetize its music video content online by leveraging Google's extensive advertiser network of hundreds of thousands of advertisers. The company's expansive music video catalog will be sponsored by Google advertisers making it free to all users. The advertising revenue generated will be shared by Sony and Google.
Google followed the Sony announcement with a similar agreement with Warner Music Group Corp just a few hours later. Users in the U.S. can watch any of the thousands of music videos, artist interviews, "behind-the-scenes" footage and other artist-related content from WMG on Google Video. In the coming months, users can also access audio-visual content from WMG through Google's partner websites in its AdSense network.
Is YouTube Next?
Google's recent forays into expanding its video-related search functionality, along with today's announcements with Sony and Warner have re-ignited the debate regarding a supposed deal to buy top online video service YouTube Inc. Sources tell Reuters News Agency that the deal could be announced as early as today, with the board of directors of both companies meeting to vote on the estimated $1.65 billion deal, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Web site, citing an unnamed source.
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