Google snaps up YouTube for $1.65B

[jammur21]

Google snaps up YouTube for $1.65B

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE, AP Business Writer 1 minute ago

SAN FRANCISCO - Google Inc. snapped up YouTube Inc. for $1.65 billion Monday in deal that catapults the Internet search leader to a leading role in the online video revolution.
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The all-stock acquisition unites one of the Internet's marquee companies with one of its rapidly rising stars.

The price makes YouTube, a still-unprofitable startup, by far the most expensive purchase made by Google during its eight-year history.

Although some cynics have questioned YouTube's staying power, Google is betting that the popular Web site will provide it an increasingly lucrative marketing hub as more viewers and advertisers migrate from television to the Internet.

"We are natural partners to offer a compelling media entertainment service to users, content owners and advertisers," said Eric Schmidt, Google's chief executive officer.

YouTube will continue to retain its brand, as well as all 67 employees, including co-founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen.


I wish I had copyrights that were being infringed on youtube right now.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Mark Cuban said buying youtube was the dumbest idea ever... Guess we'll see.

 

[Todd33]

$1.6B for a place that host mostly copy protected video, haha.

1. Buy youtube
2. ?
3. Profit!

 

[Genx87]

These sites are so effing obvious, wish I had the ballz to try and create one to sell to a google.

Next up will be Myspace.com.

These guys probably spent more time getting venture capital to float their storage and bandwidth needs than actually developing the site. The site looks ridiculously simple.

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Mark Cuban said buying youtube was the dumbest idea ever... Guess we'll see.

That's because he didn't own You Tube.

Google has money to burn.

 

[Jetster]

i bet some people are having a party right now with this news, and then line up with lawsuits hoping to get a hand inside google's deep pocket

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: Genx87
These sites are so effing obvious, wish I had the ballz to try and create one to sell to a google.

Next up will be Myspace.com.

These guys probably spent more time getting venture capital to float their storage and bandwidth needs than actually developing the site. The site looks ridiculously simple.

The Evil Empire (NewsCorp) already bought MySpace.

 

[GoPackGo]

Google could be laying the foundations to compete with cable.

Imagine paying 10/20 bucks a months to get all the tv channels, plus user provided content.

Watching TV via the internet is the next big wave.

 

[Genx87]

Originally posted by: GoPackGo
Google could be laying the foundations to compete with cable.

Imagine paying 10/20 bucks a months to get all the tv channels, plus user provided content.

Watching TV via the internet is the next big wave.

I think you are probably right, the problem is the bandwidth hasnt been there, isnt really here yet, but will be in the future.

I can totally see people getting content like movies, tv shows, ect through the internet in the future.

Especially when higher bandwidth gets into the homes of Americans. 100Mbps to a home and you can have a couple of streams of HD coming down the pipe.

 

[Zebo]

As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

 

[Zebo]

Originally posted by: Genx87
These sites are so effing obvious, wish I had the ballz to try and create one to sell to a google.

Next up will be Myspace.com.

These guys probably spent more time getting venture capital to float their storage and bandwidth needs than actually developing the site. The site looks ridiculously simple.

Go for it. Sounds like these dot coms just like throwing money (your 401K money) away on anything with hits.

 

[ebaycj]

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

same place the billions in profit for showing television : advertising.

 

[Schadenfroh]

RIAA/MPAA raping Google with lawsuits in 3...2...1...

 

[Zebo]

Originally posted by: ebaycj

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

same place the billions in profit for showing television : advertising.

Internet is'nt passive entertainment like TV. It's an active form of participation where people will switch to the new GenX's adfree 'Youtube' until it gets sold. Then theres adblockers. The net culture is different as well...Most people I know wont stand for 5 min ads per 8 min programming like TV has.

 

[BaliBabyDoc]

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

If I had to guess . . . Brin et al may be out of ideas. Where's the growth going to come from? They obviously want to eat Yahoo's breakfast, the telecos' lunch and M$FT's dinner but it's not like the rest of the tech world is sitting still. Yahoo Search looks like a winner. Telecos are likely to come out ahead when it comes to payGo for bandwidth. And despite the occasional two left feet and Chancellor Palpatine finding religion and going off to save the world . . . M$FT is still the Evil Empire.

It's a gamble but at least Google can gamble with its own money . . . better yet . . . use their own inflated stock. I bet my kid's allowance is more than Google's EPS and she's not even two years-old! They spent $1.65B on nothing and the market value of the company went up by $2.7B.

 

[cruzer]

It's worth noting that Google spent no cash for this, just mounds of their over valued stock, so they haven't gambled much here.

 

[rchiu]

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

Heh, the key here is the all stock deal. Who cares about dumb investment when you're stock is valued at more than Intel and AMD combined and you can buy stuff with your over priced stock.......

 

[Zebo]

Originally posted by: BaliBabyDoc

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

If I had to guess . . . Brin et al may be out of ideas. Where's the growth going to come from? They obviously want to eat Yahoo's breakfast, the telecos' lunch and M$FT's dinner but it's not like the rest of the tech world is sitting still. Yahoo Search looks like a winner. Telecos are likely to come out ahead when it comes to payGo for bandwidth. And despite the occasional two left feet and Chancellor Palpatine finding religion and going off to save the world . . . M$FT is still the Evil Empire.

It's a gamble but at least Google can gamble with its own money . . . better yet . . . use their own inflated stock. I bet my kid's allowance is more than Google's EPS and she's not even two years-old! They spent $1.65B on nothing and the market value of the company went up by $2.7B.

Platform independant Google Office would be 100% of my focus but what do I know.

 

[yllus]

I don't think a lot of you understand that Google isn't buying technology - they're buying the community (specifically, their eyeballs).

 

[Zebo]

Originally posted by: rchiu

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

Heh, the key here is the all stock deal. Who cares about dumb investment when you're stock is valued at more than Intel and AMD combined and you can buy stuff with your over priced stock.......

Does'nt grow on trees...It's still real money even in stock cerificates which could have been used differently and better, no?

 

[Zebo]

Originally posted by: yllus
I don't think a lot of you understand that Google isn't buying technology - they're buying the community (specifically, their eyeballs).

Second they show an ad my eyeballs will be over at Putfile or half a dozen others

 

[rchiu]

Originally posted by: Zebo

Originally posted by: rchiu

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

Heh, the key here is the all stock deal. Who cares about dumb investment when you're stock is valued at more than Intel and AMD combined and you can buy stuff with your over priced stock.......

Does'nt grow on trees...It's still real money even in stock cerificates which could have been used differently and better, no?

Yeah, but there aren't many over-hype web only fad that matches perfectly with what they do. Plus PR is the name of the game in google world since their business is to get their name out so more people will use google and they can sell more ad for more. This move no doubt get their name on paper and gets people's attention.

 

[bobdelt]

Originally posted by: rchiu

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

Heh, the key here is the all stock deal. Who cares about dumb investment when you're stock is valued at more than Intel and AMD combined and you can buy stuff with your over priced stock.......

Well, their market caps are actually about equal (google vs amd + intc) as well as the combined P/E.

It still costs them money. The stock had value they could have sold for cash and they cant just print more shares of stock.

 

[Pabster]

Originally posted by: ebaycj

Originally posted by: Zebo
As far as internets stocks go this is the dumbest thing Ive ever heard of. Like google couldn't make a youtube in about a day? They already have google video. Second to what ends? Where's the billions profit in showing free videos?

same place the billions in profit for showing television : advertising.

We have a winnar :laugh:

Google and their advertising might will turn YouTube profitable rather quickly, IMHO. And they will be able to reduce the monthly bandwidth costs with their enormous buying power and all that dark fiber.

They're betting on more and more people going away from TV and on to the 'Net for video, and I believe they're right.

 

[jackschmittusa]

I think it was a stupid move. I hope they wrote a clause that puts half of the money in escrow to cover the coming litigation. Much of the current content will now vanish since it is copyrighted and Google has money. How could they possibly calculate how many people will abandon the site when so much of the current stuff disappears? Since Youtube can't turn a profit now, how can it be expected to with the massive loss of content? Sure, Google has more content that it can dump on the site, but......