Google has acquired Episodic, a smaller, lesser-known rival to Brightcove and Ooyala. Details of the deal have not been revealed, and it’s unclear what, apart from Episodic’s technology and staff being woven into YouTube, this means.
Google & Episodic
Google seems to be on a bit of a buying spree at the moment, with multiple companies being brought into the fold during the first few weeks of 2010. February saw Google finalize a deal to acquire video compression specialists On2, and now Episodic has been added to the shopping list.
Episodic is an online video hosting platform which helps publishers and marketers “stream, measure and monetize” video content to the Web or mobile devices such as the iPhone.
Google Buys Episodic
Episodic announced it was becoming part of Google on Friday, and the deal has since been confirmed by Google itself.
“We are impressed by the Episodic team, the vision they have for Internet video, and the progress they have made in bringing a great video experience to the web. We look forward to working with this talented group of individuals, and the technology they’ve created, to continue to deliver a powerful and flexible platform to our partners.”
The price of the acquisition has not been announced, but it’s likely to have been less than the $500 million Google would have had to pay for Brightcove, one of its targets during 2009.
This acquisition would seem to put an end to Google’s targeting of Brightcove, and suggests the search giant feels confident in being able to build a customer base rather than buying a ready-made one.
What The Deal Means…
It’s not yet known what the deal means, but TechCrunch claims that Episodic’s technology and staff will be folded into YouTube as early as next week.
Episodic has put new sign-ups on temporary hold but promises existing customers that their service and support will not now come to an end.
Google could use Episodic to develop new ways of making money from online video, with The Next Web floating the possibility of ‘YouTube Pro’. Episodic caters more to professional video creators than the amateurs that form the majority of YouTube’s users, so that could also come into play.
Conclusions
Is there any stopping Google? I guess when you have as much money as Google does, you can just buy other companies which have the technology, staff, and ideas you need to improve your services. And Episodic looks set to bring new – as yet undefined – elements to YouTube.
