Google To Buy YouTube

MOUNTAIN VIEW/SAN MATEO, October 10: Validating a rumor that
has been circulating since last Friday, Internet search and advertising giant
Google is set to purchase YouTube, the web’s most popular viral video
destination, in a deal valued at a whopping $1.65 billion in stock.

YouTube, which lets users post and watch videos online, has
experienced explosive growth, with the number of unique visitors rising from
about 3 million a year ago to nearly 100 million today. Even though YouTube has
made no profit to date, the site has emerged as a major source of entertainment
for younger people. Many analysts see it as a competitor to other forms of
video delivery.

YouTube and CBS recently signed an agreement whereby CBS
will launch a branded channel on YouTube presenting a wide range of
ad-supported video clips drawn from its broadcast and cable properties,
including material from Survivor, CBS
Evening News with Katie Couric, and 60 Minutes. Google and CBS will share the ad revenue.

With YouTube now within its holdings, Google instantly
boosts its presence in the growing phenomenon of online video, where its own
Google Video service has faltered by comparison. “The acquisition is an
exciting next step in terms of our thinking of the evolution of the Internet
and video,” said Eric Schmidt, CEO, Google.

Other companies reported to have been courting YouTube in
recent weeks include Microsoft and Viacom.