YouTube VP Describes Shift to 'On-Demand' Video Use, Says Consumers Are Testing

YouTube Vice President-Content Partnerships Kelly Merryman thinks consumers are in a “testing phase” for their TV watching preferences, she said Monday during the Technology Policy Institute’s meeting in Aspen, Colorado. Google owns YouTube. “There is a shift from linear to on-demand,” growing over years, she said. “That shift is being asked for by the user. Now, I don’t actually think that by definition that on-demand shift means unbundling and I don’t know that shift means new players.” She praised the “great job” of traditional channels in developing programming. One key question she considers is people’s willingness to pay and she doesn’t know the answer. “I expect bundles are attractive, bundles are good, the question is how big is that bundle,” Merryman said, pointing to so-called “skinny” bundles and other consumer testing underway. “If you have a strong brand, strong creative eye and great programming, there’s a world of happiness and probably strengthened growth for you over time in this new environment because on-demand drives more watching,” she said. She also lauded YouTube’s current balance in handling copyrighted material. “We launched Content ID as a tool seven years ago and over that course of time we paid out a billion dollars to rights holder and we’ve given the power to rights holder, 'Do I want to block, do I want to track, do I want to monetize?'” she said, calling that “the right spot.” Fifty percent of YouTube consumption is on mobile devices, she said.