streaming movies

• MGM Studios has just announced they will begin putting content on YouTube, beginning with full-length versions of “Bulletproof Monk” and “The Magnificent Seven” in addition to clips from “American Gladiators” and other films like “Legally Blonde.”
• All supported by advertising.
• While YouTube owns the user generated video space hands down, when it comes to licensed content the site has found itself playing catch-up to Hulu, the streaming video joint-venture by Fox and NBC.
• MGM’s co-president Jim Packer: “We will have some long-form videos up on YouTube, but I don’t think that’s the platform to have 30 or 40 movies up at once … I feel much more comfortable doing that on a site like Hulu.”
• In an attempt to make itself a better home for professional content YouTube recently added a theater viewing option that shows clips in letterbox and blacks out the rest of the screen, a feature already found on Hulu — but will it be enough?
• YouTube’s monetization problem looks worse when contrasted with the advertising money that Hulu’s been able to generate with its quality over quantity approach. Hulu has been projected to match YouTube’s revenue this year after only starting operations in October 2007. Hulu regularly sells out its ad inventory.

Obviously this is a good move for YouTube, who at this point should take any professional content deals they can get. Although Hulu currently has the lead when it comes to studio content, the switching costs for someone to watch the same video on YouTube are practically non-existant. YouTube’s massive traffic lead means that if they can provide the content, they will get the eyeballs.

NYT

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