Google buys YouTube for $1.65 billion

[Kadie]

Google buys YouTube for $1.65 billion
Search giant’s purchase of video sharing service biggest in its history


BREAKING NEWS

Updated: 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.

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.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15196982 /

[Subdivisions]

1. Cool! You Tube FOREVER!!! eom

You know, they've only got around 25 employees that helped build You Tube. All of them should come out sittin' pretty. Good for them.

Now, I'm off to build the next Google acquisition!

[driver8]

6. Need investors??

I love stories like this.

I wish, just once, that I was part of the story!!

[electron_blue]

2. great!

[Nictuku]

3. I worry about censorship

Google is getting too damn big for my comfort.

[philosophie_en_rose]

5. I worry about privacy.

I don't use Gmail or Google, because every search and every message is kept in perpetuity by Google for reasons unknown.

I'm happy for the youtube creators, but Google is Big Brother.

[Ian David]

7. I trust Google more than I trust the government.

But I don't trust media consolidation.

I would rather YouTube stayed independent.

[silverweb]

9. Same here.

I always get uncomfortable when big companies buy smaller ones and wonder if they're interested in (1) just swallowing up an annoying competitor, or (2) seeking total dominance of their field, with power to censor any debate/dissent.

[DaveJ]

11. I prefer that...

To companies that use their superior financial resources to wipe out the competition from smaller businesses, who never could stand a chance against these behemoths. Google probably could have spent a few million on making YouTube look inferior but instead their efforts were rewarded.

[TheWatcher]

13. I told everyone on this forum MONTHS ago to enjoy YouTube while you can

That some large corporate monster would absorb them.

And like clockwork, it has happened.

Hopefully, this will not mean anything sinister.

But it usually does.

[Sensitivity]

4. Google tube should be a force for change in 08. Watch out Pukes.

[Rex]

8. Another govt acquisition. YT was getting too big not to be monitored

for terrorist activity.

[The_Casual_Observer]

10. I'll bet they ruin the whole thing. It was too free & too good to last.

[northzax]

15. what the heck does Google charge for?

only the corporate versions of products like googleearth. if this was Yahoo, I could see a fear of charging, but Google's model has always been to give away content in exchange for ad revenue.

[dubyaD40web]

12. GooTube?

[LibertyorDeath]

19. LOL !

Or better still GooeyTube

[Ignacio Upton]

14. Question: what will happen to Google Video?

I've noticed that Google Video allows for more full-length movies, while YouTube is mostly in the form of clips.

[Old and In the Way]

16. $1.65BB? For a company not even profitable?

Is this internet monopoly money denominations? I don't get it. Google does video clips now, why not plow a few hundred mill into that venture? Maybe pay-on-popularity? That'd driven everyone to post their vids on Google. This reminds me of the 90's when Yahoo was selling for 900x earnings.

My company's made a modest profit the past few years....maybe Google wants to buy mine for $50BB or so?

[Nictuku]

17. Buy them out to shut them down

so users use Google Video instead.

[Omphaloskepsis]

18. The key word is community..

People hang-out on youtube. Google sucks at building a community. It is the myspace of video. It sucks, but my friends hang out there. They have mind-share.