YouTube in Talks to Produce Premium Original Video Content

In an effort to be more competitive with original content producers like Netflix and Amazon, reports say YouTube is in talks to begin funding premium content of its own.

According to a July 13 Reuters article, YouTube is currently in talks with both Hollywood and independent producers, hoping high-quality original content will remake YouTube’s image as a receptacle for low-quality, home-produced videos and make the site more attractive to advertisers.

The web video giant has reportedly been talking to producers for two months already, exploring the possibilities for content that viewers will want to see, but no exact plan or program structure has yet been made, Reuters reports.

Reuters’ report cited information from two sources about YouTube’s discussions for creating premium content. One source told Reuters that YouTube could offer as much as $1 to 3 million to producers for a series of programs along with marketing funds. The second source said YouTube will likely look to produce programming shorter than the 30-minute, TV-quality videos that sites like Amazon have been producing.

However, both sources told Reuters that YouTube’s discussions to produce original content are very much in their initial stages — and that these talks may never materialize into actual plans to create video.