YouTube Strikes Deal To Offer New Films for Online Rental - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JamesG · 04-27-2011, 04:34 PM

YouTube Strikes Deals to Offer New Films for Online Rental
By John Mitchell
Posted Apr 27th 2011

Hoping to get in on the action that has made Netflix such a massive success, YouTube has secured deals with Warner Bros., Sony, Universal, Lionsgate and the Weinstein Co. to offer more films for streaming online the same day they become available on DVD and Blu-ray.

YouTube began renting films last year, but its offerings have largely been older films that Variety refers to as "library fare."

The site's video-on-demand service has offered rentals for between $2 and $4 per film, numbers similar to those charged by rival VOD services like iTunes and Best Buy's CinemaNow. Whether YouTube will offer a monthly subscription streaming service in the manner of Netflix and Hulu Plus remains unclear.

Film studios have largely avoided exclusivity deals with digital distributors, believing instead that releasing a film to multiple online rental services simultaneously is more profitable.

Adding YouTube, with its 130 million unique visitors per month in the U.S. and 2 billion video views per day worldwide, to their arsenal of rental services seems a wise move as studios look to combat dwindling DVD sales.

However, The New York Times reports that even with these new deals in place, YouTube still only has half of the industry's top studios on board. Walt Disney, which has close ties to Apple and its iTunes rental service, 20th Century Fox and Paramount have yet to reach an agreement with the video-streaming service.

When it comes to Paramount, things remain tricky for the Google-owned company, as it continues to be involved in a $1 billion copyright infringement lawsuit with Viacom, Paramount's corporate owner.

Last year, a federal judge in New York sided with YouTube and dismissed Viacom's case; Viacom is appealing the ruling.

Between them, Disney, Fox and Paramount account for 60 percent of the North American film market.

"We've steadily been adding more and more titles since launching movies for rent on YouTube over a year ago and now have thousands of titles available," a YouTube spokesman said in a statement.

While the company did not comment on when the deals would take affect, experts anticipate new films will begin showing up on the website sometime in May.

Google appears to be looking to the success of Netflix with its decision to use a VOD rental system to turn YouTube into a major revenue generator.

Netflix tripled its value in 2010, giving it a market value of $13 billion (more than many of the studios whose films and TV shows it distributes).

In the first quarter of 2011, the video-streaming service reportedly signed up nearly 3.7 million new users, bringing its total number of subscribers to over 23.7 million.

http://blog.moviefone.com/2011/04/27...online-rental/

sh3k · 04-29-2011, 08:11 AM

I don't see any new movies in youtube which are of bd or dvd clarity. I guess this deal wasn't accepted by the producers of the movie or it is taking too much for the deal to be accepted ?

JamesG · 05-10-2011, 12:17 PM

YouTube Ramps Up Movie Streaming
By Harley W. Lond
Posted May 10th 2011

It's been reported here and elsewhere that YouTube was in the process of beefing up its online catalog of films that users can stream to their computers -- and on Monday, the Google-owned company announced that 6,000 titles were now available.

It includes recent hits like:

The King's Speech
Inception
Little Fockers
The Green Hornet
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Part 1
Burlesque
Due Date
Inside Job
Despicable Me

Streaming costs range from $2.99 to $3.99 for a "24-hour pass," meaning you have one day to finish viewing a title once you begin it, but you have 30 days to begin watching the movie after you rent it.

Studios in the YouTube fold include NBC Universal, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, Starz, the Weinstein Co., Magnolia Pictures and others.

Conspicuously absent are Paramount, Fox and Disney.

One nice touch that YouTube has added to its pages for each film offered for rental: movie extras that one would normally find on DVD special editions, such as cast interviews, alternate endings, featurettes, trailers, and even new content specific to a tile, created by YouTube partners.

On Harry Potter, for example, there were spoofs, a J.K. Rowling biography by BioChannelTV, a 'Harry Potter/Star Wars Mashup' from the BBC, a FunnyorDie interview with Daniel Radcliffe, and more.

Clearly, YouTube wants to give Netflix, Hulu, Apple, and other similar sites a run for the money -- and wants a piece of the multi-billion dollar VOD pie.

Facebook has also recently swung a deal with Warner Bros. to stream movies to its Facebook members.

http://blog.moviefone.com/2011/05/10...vie-streaming/

04-27-2011, 04:34 PM	#1
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,121	YouTube Strikes Deal To Offer New Films for Online Rental YouTube Strikes Deals to Offer New Films for Online Rental By John Mitchell Posted Apr 27th 2011 Hoping to get in on the action that has made Netflix such a massive success, YouTube has secured deals with Warner Bros., Sony, Universal, Lionsgate and the Weinstein Co. to offer more films for streaming online the same day they become available on DVD and Blu-ray. YouTube began renting films last year, but its offerings have largely been older films that Variety refers to as "library fare." The site's video-on-demand service has offered rentals for between $2 and $4 per film, numbers similar to those charged by rival VOD services like iTunes and Best Buy's CinemaNow. Whether YouTube will offer a monthly subscription streaming service in the manner of Netflix and Hulu Plus remains unclear. Film studios have largely avoided exclusivity deals with digital distributors, believing instead that releasing a film to multiple online rental services simultaneously is more profitable. Adding YouTube, with its 130 million unique visitors per month in the U.S. and 2 billion video views per day worldwide, to their arsenal of rental services seems a wise move as studios look to combat dwindling DVD sales. However, The New York Times reports that even with these new deals in place, YouTube still only has half of the industry's top studios on board. Walt Disney, which has close ties to Apple and its iTunes rental service, 20th Century Fox and Paramount have yet to reach an agreement with the video-streaming service. When it comes to Paramount, things remain tricky for the Google-owned company, as it continues to be involved in a $1 billion copyright infringement lawsuit with Viacom, Paramount's corporate owner. Last year, a federal judge in New York sided with YouTube and dismissed Viacom's case; Viacom is appealing the ruling. Between them, Disney, Fox and Paramount account for 60 percent of the North American film market. "We've steadily been adding more and more titles since launching movies for rent on YouTube over a year ago and now have thousands of titles available," a YouTube spokesman said in a statement. While the company did not comment on when the deals would take affect, experts anticipate new films will begin showing up on the website sometime in May. Google appears to be looking to the success of Netflix with its decision to use a VOD rental system to turn YouTube into a major revenue generator. Netflix tripled its value in 2010, giving it a market value of $13 billion (more than many of the studios whose films and TV shows it distributes). In the first quarter of 2011, the video-streaming service reportedly signed up nearly 3.7 million new users, bringing its total number of subscribers to over 23.7 million. http://blog.moviefone.com/2011/04/27...online-rental/ Attached Images

04-29-2011, 08:11 AM	#2
sh3k Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Mar 06, 2011 Posts: 400	I don't see any new movies in youtube which are of bd or dvd clarity. I guess this deal wasn't accepted by the producers of the movie or it is taking too much for the deal to be accepted ?

05-10-2011, 12:17 PM	#3
JamesG Freakshow Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 01, 2008 Location: Brooklyn, NY Posts: 57,121	YouTube Ramps Up Movie Streaming By Harley W. Lond Posted May 10th 2011 It's been reported here and elsewhere that YouTube was in the process of beefing up its online catalog of films that users can stream to their computers -- and on Monday, the Google-owned company announced that 6,000 titles were now available. It includes recent hits like: The King's Speech Inception Little Fockers The Green Hornet Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows -- Part 1 Burlesque Due Date Inside Job Despicable Me Streaming costs range from $2.99 to $3.99 for a "24-hour pass," meaning you have one day to finish viewing a title once you begin it, but you have 30 days to begin watching the movie after you rent it. Studios in the YouTube fold include NBC Universal, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros., Lionsgate, Starz, the Weinstein Co., Magnolia Pictures and others. Conspicuously absent are Paramount, Fox and Disney. One nice touch that YouTube has added to its pages for each film offered for rental: movie extras that one would normally find on DVD special editions, such as cast interviews, alternate endings, featurettes, trailers, and even new content specific to a tile, created by YouTube partners. On Harry Potter, for example, there were spoofs, a J.K. Rowling biography by BioChannelTV, a 'Harry Potter/Star Wars Mashup' from the BBC, a FunnyorDie interview with Daniel Radcliffe, and more. Clearly, YouTube wants to give Netflix, Hulu, Apple, and other similar sites a run for the money -- and wants a piece of the multi-billion dollar VOD pie. Facebook has also recently swung a deal with Warner Bros. to stream movies to its Facebook members. http://blog.moviefone.com/2011/05/10...vie-streaming/