NFL programming, the most premium content in the multichannel universe, is now available in one more very prominent place: YouTube.
Google (NASDAQ: GOOG) has struck what it describes as a "multi-million dollar" licensing deal to put National Football League game clips, interviews, TV series including pay-TV staple A Football Life, and fantasy-themed shows on a new NFL YouTube channel.
Yes, more than a half-decade into the YouTube revolution, this will be the first time the NFL has a legit, official YouTube presence.
According to the Wall Street Journal, under the agreement, Google will handle ad sales for the channel. Once Google recoups the annual licensing fee it pays to the league, all further ad revenue will be split.
"We've been talking to the Google family for years, and finally found the opportunity to partner," said Hans Schroeder, the NFL's senior VP, media strategy, business development & sales, told WSJ. "We sort of wanted to wait for the right deal. It maybe took longer to get there. But this deal has the right level of appreciation on both sides."
The YouTube deal comes weeks after the NFL carved out a separate licensing agreement to show clips on another massive online platform, Facebook.
The pro football league, of course, also has lucrative arrangements with DirecTV (NASDAQ: DTV), Verizon (NYSE: VZ), Walt Disney (ESPN), NBCUniversal and CBS Corp.
For more:
- read this NFL press release
- read this Wall Street Journal story
- read this CED Magazine story
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