YouTube's Hulu Revamp

YouTube's Hulu Revamp

Mon Mar 30, 2009 8:31am
chris.thompson - The Big Money

Over the last year, the television and movie Web site Hulu has grown from a clever idea to YouTube's greatest rival, netting tens of millions of dollars in ad revenue in a matter of months. YouTube, meanwhile, has struggled to figure out how to attract advertisers spooked by the amateur video clips and format that buries more professional (and ad-supported) films beneath a cacophony of submissions. Now, YouTube has reportedly figured out how to respond: steal Hulu's best ideas.

According to the digital-advertising news site Clickz, YouTube will roll out a complete redesign next month, one that will highlight professional movies and TV shows with commercials and sponsors. Currently, the site is organized into mystifying categories such as "videos," "channels," and "community," which do almost nothing to help viewers find Star Trek episodes or other fare that actually makes YouTube money. Now, the site will separate the professional content from the amateur clips. "Movies," "music," and "shows" will bring you to ad-supported entertainment of various stripes, while "videos" will steer the user to the old user-generated content that got YouTube started but has yet to make serious bank. "It's totally a Hulu approach, but that's best practices right now," an ad executive who has seen the new format told Clickz. The rollout is reportedly scheduled for the middle of next month.

--From http://www.reuters.com/article/bigMoney/idUS301620852120090330