YouTube webpage. Google-owned YouTube and Walt Disney Co. are close to finalizing a deal to distribute videos from Disney properties on the video-sharing website, The Wall Street Journal online reported.
Google-owned YouTube and Walt Disney Co. are close to finalizing a deal to distribute videos from Disney properties on the video-sharing website, The Wall Street Journal online reported on Monday.
The newspaper, citing "people familiar with the matter," said the agreement would involve Disney putting some clips, including sports content from ESPN, on YouTube and sharing advertising revenue.
It said Disney would gain the right to sell advertisements against its content and then share that revenue with YouTube.
The Disney-YouTube agreement, which the newspaper said was "still in flux, is not expected to include full-length episodes of hit television shows, which Disney distributes on ABC.com, the Journal said.
It also said Disney was talking separately to video-sharing site Hulu about putting full episodes of ABC programs on its service. The deal would involve Disney taking up an equity stake in Hulu.
Hulu currently has four stakeholders: NBC Universal, News Corp., Providence Equity Partners and the Hulu employees.
Google purchased YouTube in 2006 for 1.65 billion dollars and has been searching for ways to translate its immense popularity into a money-making venture.
(c) 2009 AFP
