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Stop Me If You've heard This One Before: YouTube Readies On-Demand Service

In a move that could threaten a cross-section of industries, Google is reportedly in advanced talks with top movie studios to launch a YouTube-based pay-per-view movie rental service.

"Google's YouTube video site is in negotiations with Hollywood's leading movie studios to launch a global pay-per-view video service by the end of 2010, putting it head-to-head with Apple in the race to dominate the digital distribution of film and television content," reports the Financial Times, citing unnamed sources.

"YouTube is the dominant online destination for user-generated content," writes MediaBeat. "But the Google division wants to turn it into an international on-demand movie service in an effort to head off Apple in the digital distribution of film and TV shows."

"This could be the video service's big break more than four years after being acquired by Google," suggests ReadWriteWeb. "The combined power of YouTube's popularity and Google's dominance in search technology could create a new revenue model to replace falling DVD sales."

Yet, as Fast Company notes: "It's not the first time we've heard this rumor, of course -- it seems to pop up every few months or so."

What's more, "YouTube has long been expected to get into the video-on-demand business, especially since Google removed video content purchases from its (now-defunct) Google Video service at the end of 2007," writes CNet.

Still, "What's tricky about this service compared to all other digital movie distribution services (Apple's iTunes, Netflix) is that there isn't currently an officially supported means to get YouTube videos onto your TV," Fast Company adds.

Read the whole story at Fast Company et al. »

1 comment about "Stop Me If You've heard This One Before: YouTube Readies On-Demand Service".
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  1. Thorsten Rhode from marqueteer, August 31, 2010 at 1:49 p.m.

    <Still, "What's tricky about this service compared to all other digital movie distribution services (Apple's iTunes, Netflix) is that there isn't currently an officially supported means to get YouTube videos onto your TV," Fast Company adds.>

    Well, there is YOUTUBE channel on ROKU. And should YT commit to this, I am sure other devices will get a retro-fit and/or Google may just develop one -- NEXUS ONE, anyone?

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