Google trials "click to buy" links on YouTube

 

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By Stuart Turton

Posted on 8 Oct 2008 at 11:35

Google's latest attempt to make money out of YouTube will see it provide "click-to-buy" links beneath videos.

"When you view a YouTube video with a great soundtrack, you often see comments from YouTube users asking about the name of the song and where they can download it," Google claims on its blog.

"Or when users watch the trailer for an upcoming video game, they want to know when it will be released and where they can buy it."

To exploit this need Google will begin by providing links to Amazon and iTunes beneath music videos from EMI. Games from EA, such as the recently released Spore, will also feature Amazon links.

Google will make a fixed fee for every link that leads to a sale, and claims this represents the first step towards building an e-commerce service through which it will offers links selling music, movies, video games, books and even concert tickets.

The move follows Eric Schmidt's assertion that finding a way to make a profit out of YouTube was the company's top priority over the next year.

The move may also soothe the ruffled feathers of the music labels, which have long complained about their content appearing on the site.

Viacom is currently suing Google for $1 billion, claiming that piracy is the cornerstone of YouTube's business.

The new service is being trialled in the US, though the company promises that it is working on a UK version.