YouTube Videos Start Making (Ad)Sense

Posted by keirsun on October 09, 2007 at 09:56 AM

Are you one of the few who has managed to avoid wasted hours of tube-surfing on Google's popular video sharing site, more commonly known as YouTube?

If so, you likely won't be video-free for much longer. Last night, Google introduced video units.

Essentially, video units allow Google AdSense publishers to display video content from YouTube on their website(s). So if you want something a little more eye-catching than those old AdSense text ads, Google is giving you, the site owner, "a new way to enrich your site with quality, relevant video content."

In addition, Google says:

You can choose categories of video to target to your site, select content from individual YouTube partners, or have video automatically targeted to your site content. Companion and text overlay ads are relevant and non-intrusive.

Unfamiliar with Google's AdSense program? If you have ever been looking at a website and noticed links that look similar to those on the right, then you're more or less familiar with AdSense.

Site owners who sign up for AdSense allow Google to display automated, contextual ads on their site. The site owner then gets to split the profits with Google from visitor click-throughs on the ads.

Now with video content being thrown into the AdSense mix, site publishers (and Google) can make money from companion ads within the video player and text overlay ads that run across the bottom of the video itself.

Sounds like Google has found a way to compensate itself for YouTube's $1.65 billion price tag.

You can find more info about AdSense video units here.

Category
Technology