YouTube is now offering its fledgling movie rentals service in the U.K. The content is good, the prices fair. The sky is surely the limit for YouTube as it grows bigger and moves into new markets.
YouTube Movies
YouTube began experimenting with movie rentals at the beginning of 2010 in conjunction with the Sundance Film Festival. After various relaunches and content additions, YouTube Movies was relaunched in May of this year with big Hollywood studios on board.
After U.S. came Canada, and now the U.K., which is the third market YouTube has started offering movie rentals in. I’m guessing this is seen as the gateway to Europe, so expect more countries to follow soon.
YouTube Movies U.K.
YouTube movie rentals have now arrived in the U.K. While YouTube Movies has been live for a while, up to this point it was only retro (classic isn’t a fitting word for what was on offer) movies being offered for free. Now more than 1,000 movies are available to rent.
Hollywood studios now on board include Sony Pictures, Warner Bros, Universal, and Lionsgate, while films include The Dark Knight, Hanna, The Breakfast Club, and Exit Through The Gift Shop. Prices range from £2.49 ($3.87) to £3.49 ($5.43). Once a movie is paid for users have 30 days to watch it, 48-hours once viewing has begun.
The most obvious competition for YouTube Movies in the U.K. is LoveFilm, owned by Amazon. The price points are exactly the same, but LoveFilm has an established userbase totaling 1.6 million across Europe.
Conclusions
U.K. YouTube users now have access to a ton of movies as well as the TV content from British broadcasters. YouTube is rapidly beefing up its offerings, and the number of countries it offers content in.
It’s amazing to think Google only bought YouTube five years ago, and premium, longform content is a relatively recent addition to the site as well. Next up has to be a full rollout of live streaming, and potentially getting involved in production. Why not?
