YouTube & Disney Team Up for Family-Friendly Video Portals

BURBANK/SAN BRUNO: Disney Interactive and YouTube are aligning to create co-branded family-oriented online video destinations for both Disney.com and the YouTube streaming site.

Starting in early 2012, the destinations will feature video drawn from currently family-friendly content available on YouTube, original video produced by Disney and current Disney Interactive series, select Disney Channel programming and Disney user-created content. An original video series based on the hit Disney mobile game Where’s My Water? and its main character, Swampy, will be the first project to launch. It will be followed by other similar short-form, family-oriented content.

“With online video consumption exploding and YouTube at the center of that trend, we see an opportunity for Disney Interactive and YouTube to bring Disney’s legacy of storytelling to a new generation of families and Disney enthusiasts on the platforms they prefer,” said Jimmy Pitaro, co-president of Disney Interactive. “As we prepare to relaunch Disney.com in fall 2012, the Disney/YouTube destination will play a critical part in our next generation platform.”

“Disney has established itself as one of the world’s most loved brands,” added Robert Kyncl, the global head of content partnerships at YouTube. “We are thrilled to work with them to bring amazing new, family-friendly entertainment to YouTube’s audience of 800 million users worldwide.”