YouTube is the dominant, almost monopoly provider of short video hosting/viewing. It would not, by its terms of use policies, let a competing subscription service reuse its videos.
Google's strategic priority is improving its marketing targeting capabilities. This is widely understood by Google observers, and sometimes explicitly stated by Google itself, as the motivation behind the deep "Google+" integration across all services, and requirements like the 'real names' policies.
Google has a de facto monopoly in search and search-linked advertising: the largest index, the largest audience, the largest physical plant in a industry which has returns to scale, the largest broker position in the two-sided advertising auction markets. This gives them super-normal margins in that core business. Profits from that core business are used to subsidize lots of other adjacent businesses at a loss.
None of this accuses them of evil motives or actions. Their strategy has generally been legal and effective; other competent managers would be doing much the same thing provided with the same starting conditions and competencies.
Still, we should be able to honestly recognize their market power and strategies for what they are. Google's overwhemingly dominant position and preference for advertising/"sell-the-audience" models are facts about the terrain. These facts enable certain opportunities and preclude others. Projecting some sort of Manichean good/evil dimension onto the situation clouds rather than helps business analysis.
YouTube is the dominant, almost monopoly provider of short video hosting/viewing. It would not, by its terms of use policies, let a competing subscription service reuse its videos.
Google's strategic priority is improving its marketing targeting capabilities. This is widely understood by Google observers, and sometimes explicitly stated by Google itself, as the motivation behind the deep "Google+" integration across all services, and requirements like the 'real names' policies.
Google has a de facto monopoly in search and search-linked advertising: the largest index, the largest audience, the largest physical plant in a industry which has returns to scale, the largest broker position in the two-sided advertising auction markets. This gives them super-normal margins in that core business. Profits from that core business are used to subsidize lots of other adjacent businesses at a loss.
None of this accuses them of evil motives or actions. Their strategy has generally been legal and effective; other competent managers would be doing much the same thing provided with the same starting conditions and competencies.
Still, we should be able to honestly recognize their market power and strategies for what they are. Google's overwhemingly dominant position and preference for advertising/"sell-the-audience" models are facts about the terrain. These facts enable certain opportunities and preclude others. Projecting some sort of Manichean good/evil dimension onto the situation clouds rather than helps business analysis.