YouTube is continuing to expand its video rentals store despite viewers having so far failed to bite in any big way. The latest move will see partners given the means to upload content to the site with the specific intent to rent it out to users.
YouTube Video Rentals
YouTube made the move into video rentals in time for the Sundance Film festival in January. Five independent films were offered during this trial period, with YouTube pulling in around $10,000 in total during that time.
Fast-forward to April and the YouTube video rentals store officially opened for business. Films and TV shows belonging to multiple genres can now be rented for 48 hours for a fee ranging from $0.99 and $3.99.
The store is still limited to the U.S., and still isn’t being promoted in any big way.
Content Partners
YouTube is forging ahead with plans to increase content, with partners reportedly soon to be provided with tools to upload videos and offer them for rental without YouTube’s guiding hand.
This was first misreported as being open to all YouTube users, with everyone able to offer their videos on a paid-for rental basis. Which would have been fascinating but unworkable in practice.
Instead, YouTube is limiting this to existing content partners, which tend to produce professional content.
Perseverance Is Key
Some are asking why YouTube is bothering with this when the video rentals store hasn’t exactly proved popular until now. But Google didn’t get where it is today by giving up on an idea without giving it a proper chance to shine.
The fact is that the video rentals store hasn’t yet been promoted in any big way, and it’s likely only people interested in online video that know about its existence.
When YouTube rolls this out to the mainstream, and hopefully also internationally in the months to come, then I suspect the number of streams and revenue will increase substantially. And more content will also help the numbers make it worth the effort.
Conclusions
Will the YouTube video rentals store prove successful? It’s too early to tell at the moment. But I certainly think YouTube is right to persevere. And the naysayers suggesting it’s all a waste of time may end up with egg on their faces.
