YouTube Adds MGM Films to Full-Length Roster

Written by Ryan Lawler

Monday, November 10. 2008 at 09:05 AM EST Post a comment

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With the news today that Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. will begin offering full-length television and movie content on YouTube Inc. , it looks as if the studios are finally warming up to the site.

Just a few days after CNET reported that YouTube would soon host full-length, ad-supported Hollywood movies on its site, The New York Times reports that MGM will become the first studio to add complete films to the video share site.

According to the report, MGM will upload full-length episodes of television shows, including the always classic American Gladiators, as well as movies such as Bulletproof Monk and The Magnificent Seven. 

Despite the fact that the new MGM content might not be the most compelling video on the site [ed. note: Our vote for that title goes to the timeless Battle at Kruger], it does represent a turning point for YouTube, which is trying to shed its reputation as a destination site for stupid pet videos and other user-generated content. 

To that end, YouTube recently added a new 16x9 "theater view" video player, and signed up CBS Corp. (NYSE: CBS) to add full-length television episodes to its content channel. In doing so, the company is positioning itself against sites like Hulu LLC , in hopes that premium content will bring with it the ability to monetize more of its content, as well as higher CPMs.