Google's $1.65 billion deal to acquire YouTube yesterday could boost its ambitions to significantly broaden its ad-brokering activities beyond simple text ads on Web pages to larger amounts of
video advertising online. The all-stock purchase marries Google's massive collection of computers, data lines and systems for serving online ads from thousands of advertisers with YouTube's leading
position in playing videos for users on the Web. Critics said Google could be exposing itself to liability for copyright violations, since videos posted by users without permission of content owners
are available through YouTube's site.
But YouTube has been racing to sign deals with media and entertainment companies to license their content, generally agreeing to share online ad revenue
with the content owners. For example, YouTube early Monday announced agreements with Vivendi SA's Universal Music Group and Sony Corp. and Bertelsmann AG joint venture Sony BMG. The video site also
signed a content and ad-revenue-sharing agreement with CBS Corp. related to video from CBS Television Network, Showtime Networks Inc. and CSTV Networks Inc.
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