Lagardère Active and YouTube: strategic partnership for internet video broadcasting

Didier Quillot

, CEO of Lagardère Active, and Henrique de Castro, Google and YouTube Vice-President of Global Media and Platforms, today announce the signing of an international strategic partnership between Lagardère Active and YouTube.

This strategic partnership for both Lagardère Active and YouTube aims to speed up the promotion and monetization of premium video content at an international scale.

In the coming months, Lagardère Active will make available to the YouTube community in France an outstanding selection of the French audiovisual library catalogue, including drama, documentaries and animation.

The agreement also includes the best of current French drama for international broadcasting to speed up exposure and generate new commercial opportunities. Broadcasting will involve the active management of Europe Images International’s distribution rights (a Lagardère Active’s division responsible for the distribution of TV programs).

Through the creation of branded channels, Lagardère Active will also offer a selection of programs from its TV and radio divisions, as well as premium clips from its flagship brands in the United States, Great Britain, France, Spain, Italy, Holland and Japan (sites such as Elle, Digital Spy Premiere, CarandDriver…).

By the summer, more than 315 hours of archive programs (full length content), 24 hours/month of TV programs, and 7,000 premium clips will be uploaded on YouTube; by end of 2010, the partnership will give the community access to over 600 hours of library catalogue, 40 hours/month of TV programs and more than 10,000 premiums clips.

Didier Quillot, CEO of Lagardère Active, said: “Video is a major growth area for Lagardère Active on the Internet. This partnership is one of the first of such a scale to be signed by an international media group with YouTube. It offers us a unique opportunity to benefit from the extent of our archive, while at the same time protecting works and combating piracy through the Content ID tool developed by YouTube”.

Henrique de Castro, Google and YouTube Global Vice-President, Media and Platforms, added: “We’re thrilled to establish a relationship with Lagardère Active to bring its high quality programming to YouTube and, at the same time, establish new revenue streams. The demand on YouTube for compelling and entertaining content like that offered by Lagardère Active increases every day and we look forward to connecting both existing fans and new viewers on YouTube with their full length television shows, films and clips of all lengths.”