News

Lionsgate and YouTube have signed a deal that will find two normally opposing entities—a studio and a popular media website—cooperating. While many studios have resisted YouTube for fear of content piracy, Lionsgate is breaking the mold and joining forces with the Google-owned property.

Details are still being hammered out, but a revenue sharing deal will include a Lionsgate-exclusive YouTube channel, complete with advertising and clips from Lionsgate's assets being posted online. The site will be specifically branded with Lionsgate artistic properties.

Most studios use YouTube to run ads or to post film trailers and clips, but for little else. Given the popularity of the site, which provides a massive amount of viral content, Lionsgate executives have said that they are simply responding to consumer wants and market demands, and has opted to work with, rather than against, the controversial site.

—The ARTISTdirect Staff
07.17.08