SEO News: Google to Offer Pay-Per-View Movie Service – Will it Stand Up to its Competitors?

Later this year, Google may begin offering pay-per-view movies via online video site YouTube. This will include new releases, possibly offered at $5 per film. YouTube already offers some older titles for a rental fee of .99 to $4, but their catalog is limited. Google is currently talking with various movie studios, such as Lions Gate, Sony, MGM, and Warner Bros. about including their titles in the YouTube catalog. New titles will possibly be offered the same day they are released on DVD.

It’s also speculated that this service will be integrated with upcoming Google TV. According to Google Senior Product Manager Rishi Chandra, the purpose of Google TV is, "to bring the entire Web to the television set…to take the best of what TV offers these days and the best of what the Web offers and combine them."

Google TV will give television the navigation capabilities of the web. This will benefit viewers and advertisers alike. Viewers can navigate TV to more easily find the programs and channels they want to watch. And advertisers can include links in their commercials to take interested viewer to the company’s website, which will allow for more effective internet marketing.

Both the pay-per-view service and Google TV are speculated to launch around the same time. They can be integrated in the way that those with the Google TV service can watch pay-per-view films on YouTube right through their televisions. This will provide a more comfortable viewing experience than sitting at a computer desk or watching a film on a small laptop screen.

With the decline of video stores like Blockbuster, streaming movies over the Internet is where the future of video rental lies. After all, you don't have to leave your house to get the movies, there are no late fees, and you don't have to worry about getting a DVD that is scratched and won't play or skips constantly. Netflix, iTunes, and Hulu already offer such services. Will Google offer a worthy competitor? Or will this service flop like so many of Google's other recent endeavors, such as Google Buzz or Google Wave?

Google is counting on the popularity of YouTube to make their pay-per-view service a success. Currently, YouTube is one of the most popular sites on the web, with approximately 100 million visitors every month, and an outstanding Alexa rating of 3 worldwide. This high traffic website already has a huge audience that will be aware of this new service when it launches.

However, it is possible that part of the popularity of YouTube is the ability to watch a bunch of short videos for free. Many people visit YouTube to see the latest viral video, watch that funny commercial they keep hearing about (Old Spice Guy?), or watch music videos from their favorite artist when the have a little bit of time to kill. Will the YouTube audience be drawn to visit the site to pay to watch full-length movies? Or is the plethora of user generated content and short videos the main draw?

Another factor that might hamper success is that Google may be a bit late to the party. Netflix has already implemented an instant viewing service that allows members to watch films instantly over the Internet and video game consoles like the Nintendo Wii. Other services like Hulu, iTunes, and Amazon Video on Demand are also gaining popularity as sites for viewing films and TV shows. Will the already large YouTube audience be enough to propel Google's pay-per-view service over its competitors? What will Google offer that its competitors won't?

It's obvious that Google is trying very hard to stay on top of the search engine and Internet realm. The Web giant already has plans for a social network that is said to possibly rival Facebook, which will prove to be a daunting task. However, Google is willing to take on the challenge of starting its own online social networking site, and has already acquired companies involved in social media services. Only the future will tell if Google will stay on top, or finally crumble.