The Morning Bridge:
YouTube execs are apparently eyeing a subscription TV service that could revolutionize (theoretically) the way consumers pay for premium content. Speaking at the All Thing’s D conference this week, YouTube CEO Salar Kamangar said not only would the company explore VOD sales more, but it could create a service that would enable content creators to develop their own subscription channels on the YouTube platform.
“We’ve learned from our experience with YouTube that you can’t predict what’s going to be big,” he said. So “we’re trying to place our bets far and wide.”
In his remarks, Kamangar said of all video revenues, about 40% comes from advertising, 40% comes from subscriptions, and 20% comes from sales and rentals. YouTube has focused mostly on the advertising part of the pie, which the CEO says, could grow exponentially if providers enhance their current video offerings.
Enter a YouTube pay platform – one that content partners could leverage for their own subscription revenues while boosting YouTube’s ad sales (even more) in return. Seeing as how the company is ambitiously launching a 100-channel original programming line-up online, and is currently developing subscription streaming channels for live sporting events, YouTube is beginning to look like more like a service provider than website anyway…
Bottom line, Kamangar proclaimed, “We’re a media platform.” •
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