Google pays $1.65b to takeover YouTube

Internet search giant Google is buying YouTube for $1.65 billion, brushing aside copyright concerns to seize a starring role in the online video revolution, an Associated Press report said.

 

The Associated Press report said the all-stock deal unites one of the Internet's marquee companies with one of its rapidly rising stars.

 

It came just a few hours after YouTube unveiled three separate agreements with media companies to counter the threat of copyright-infringement lawsuits, the report said.

 

The price makes YouTube, a still-unprofitable startup, by far the most expensive purchase made by Google during its eight-year history, the report said.

 

Although some cynics have questioned YouTube's staying power, Google is betting that the popular video-sharing site will provide it an increasingly lucrative marketing hub as more viewers and advertisers migrate from television to the Internet, the report said.

 

The deal is expected to close before the end of the year.