YouTube, an entitiy of Google Inc, is offering its “celebrities” top dollar to sign exclusive contract deals, according to The Wall Street Journal. Facebook Inc. and a new video company Vessel are trying to entice YouTube stars who bring in heavy traffic to the video site. Google is proposing that vloggers sign multiyear deals, “in which they agree to post content exclusively on YouTube for a time before putting it on a rival service.” YouTube has also been reported to have been offering its top video makers funds for additional programming.
Vessel, founded by former Hulu Chief Executive Jason Kilar, has raised $75 million in venture capital, according to Crunchbase, and is looking to secure programming by the end of the year before their planned launch. One YouTube star claims the offerings from competitors are quite generous: ‘”I would like to remain on YouTube,†says this person. “But some of the competing offers are incredibly attractive.â€,’ according to The Wallstreet Journal.
One could see why competitors are trying their hardest to “steal” YouTube talent. Vlogger Michelle Phan, for example, has over 6 million subscribers, and her numbers are only growing, which in turn means more numbers to the site. She has authored a best selling book and snagged deals with Dr. Pepper, L’Oreal and Toyota. She says, as reported by TWJ, Ms. Phan, “it [the competing deal] looks ‘stunning,’ but she adds that YouTube’s online niche is well-defined and the site isn’t at risk of losing users. ‘If you want to get lost in the Internet black hole you go on YouTube,’ she said.”
It’s all intriguing that Vlogging has become a real career in 2014, so much so billion dollar companies are willing to pay their top video streamers. The ball is in the high-trafficking YouTuber’s court as they have leverage to negotiate deals.