Google buys YouTube in $1.65 billion stock deal
Google has announced a $1.65 billion stock deal to buy hot young video-sharing website YouTube.
“The YouTube team has built an exciting and powerful media platform that complements Google’s mission to organise the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful,” Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said in a statement.
YouTube soared to online popularity after its launch in February 2005. The comp a ny cl a i m s t h at m o re than 100 million v i d e o s a re watched daily by visitors to the f re e website, wh i ch features content provided by users.
YouTube would continue to operate independently with its headquarters in San Bruno, California, after the acquisition is complete, according to Google. All of YouTube’s 65 employees were to remain with the company.
In unofficial Silicon Valley tradition, YouTube was launched on its meteoric rise from a garage. It announced a first round of funding of $3.5 million from Sequoia Capital in November of last year.
Just hours before the agreed buy out by Google YouTube announced deals to license content from two major record companies. YouTube reached deals with Vivendi’s Universal music group and Sony BMG Music Entertainment that will let the web site post music videos and content from users that includes copyrighted material in exchange for sharing ad revenue.
Meanwhile, Warner Music group corp and Sony BMG announced separate licensing agreements with Google, which now operates its own video-sharing site called Google Video. Financial details of the deals were not disclosed. Agencies
BUYING SPREE
The deal makes YouTube by far the most expensive purchase made by Google during its eight-year history
Last year, Google had spent $130.5 million for buying a total of 15 small companies
“The YouTube team has built an exciting and powerful media platform that complements Google’s mission to organise the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful,” Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said in a statement.
YouTube soared to online popularity after its launch in February 2005. The comp a ny cl a i m s t h at m o re than 100 million v i d e o s a re watched daily by visitors to the f re e website, wh i ch features content provided by users.
YouTube would continue to operate independently with its headquarters in San Bruno, California, after the acquisition is complete, according to Google. All of YouTube’s 65 employees were to remain with the company.
In unofficial Silicon Valley tradition, YouTube was launched on its meteoric rise from a garage. It announced a first round of funding of $3.5 million from Sequoia Capital in November of last year.
Just hours before the agreed buy out by Google YouTube announced deals to license content from two major record companies. YouTube reached deals with Vivendi’s Universal music group and Sony BMG Music Entertainment that will let the web site post music videos and content from users that includes copyrighted material in exchange for sharing ad revenue.
Meanwhile, Warner Music group corp and Sony BMG announced separate licensing agreements with Google, which now operates its own video-sharing site called Google Video. Financial details of the deals were not disclosed. Agencies
BUYING SPREE
The deal makes YouTube by far the most expensive purchase made by Google during its eight-year history
Last year, Google had spent $130.5 million for buying a total of 15 small companies
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