YouTube Strikes MGM Deal

The online desktop video wars are heating up, which could eventually have a profound effect on mobile devices. Here’s the latest: YouTube today is announcing a deal wit MGM to host some of its content, which marks a long-anticipated (and frankly, kind of late) answer to Hulu and other desktop video portals, Wired reports.

Don’t look for a strong entrance, however. Among the initial MGM offerings are episodes of “American Gladiators” and video clips from “Legally Blonde.”

Still, this was a long time coming. “While YouTube has become the leading brand of online video, it has yet to figure out how to monetize its success in any major way,” the report said. “Meanwhile it faces upstart competition from such services as Hulu, which had 6.3 million visitors in September, according to Nielsen, and more than 100 sponsors.”

And since YouTube has many mobile initiatives in play—including carrier tie-ins, native YouTube streaming apps, and a WAP site—the new MGM content could also find its way to mobile devices sooner rather than later.

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