Google Video tunes into Europe

By Alun Williams

Posted on 12 Jul 2006 at 17:51

Google has launched its Google Video service in Europe: France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and Spain, as well the UK; and in Canada, too.

You can find the UK version at video.google.co.uk for quickly uploading and sharing videos - a la the phenomenally successful YouTube.

'By launching Google Video in these new markets we will enable more people in more countries to search for, upload and share video content in more languages,' said Google's European Director of Partnerships, Joanna Shields. 'We're excited to work with our content providers and advertisers around the world to help them use Google Video to reach a wider global audience'.

Yahoo! also recently revamped its own Video service in June to bring it more in line with YouTube functionality, which promptly updated its own offering.

Functionality of the site highlighted by Google includes: searching (natch) for video content from around the world, ease of posting content to blogs and sites such as MySpace, the ability to look up the Top 100 videos, rating content (from one to five stars) and leaving comments.

Google says it is building a network of European media partners to upload their content over the coming months. The organisations name checked are varied and many: Barcelona FC ('Google allows us to diversify the means and channels through which our supporters around the world can follow the club'), Netherlands Public Broadcasting, Premium TV, and the Cousteau Society. More specifically for the UK, there is also ITN and talkbackTHAMES (the catalogue of which includes Green Wing, Smack the Pony and Bo Selecta).