Hulu Follows Vevo’s Lead, Wants to Host Music Videos

Hulu, the site that offers free streaming TV shows and movies, is trying to strike deals with major labels Universal, EMI, Sony and Warner to host music videos. The dealings indicate that Hulu is planning to compete directly with YouTube-backed music video site Vevo.com, which is expected to launch later this year.

YouTube has already teamed up with Universal Music Group (UMG) for Vevo, but is also interested in negotiating the addition of the remaining labels to the new video site. Ironically, if all goes as planned, Hulu and Vevo will both stream the exact same music videos licensed from the same labels. They will undoubtedly be contending with each other for our attention in the near future, but if they are offering the same content, how will we choose between the two?

YouTube recently upped its competitiveness by introducing TV show and movie channels, like Hulu’s service. In terms of copyrighted content, a deal between Hulu and the major labels could make the two sites nearly identical. However, both Vevo and Hulu probably won’t make user-generated videos available, which have been YouTube’s main draw since its inception.

Although professional music videos are big productions that involve large quantities of cash, some of the user-created videos for popular songs are actually better than the official versions. Not only do these creations promote the newest talent in animation and film making, they also provide a different perspective on the songs themselves. YouTube has made stars out of indie film makers like M dot Strange and singers like Susan Boyle, so the democratic power of YouTube, which lets the viewer decide what is popular or not, shouldn’t be forgotten. Vevo might only be an offshoot of YouTube that gives money to labels, but the core functionality of its parent site would still be superior to Hulu’s.

Sites like Vevo and Hulu will be showing music videos of artists that benefit from major label promotion. They will feature artists with big contracts that advertise for a wide range of products, get enormous exposure on radio stations and MTV, and are generally forced upon society thanks to massive spending by the major labels. Since the arrival of Myspace, some bands have been able to gain popularity through social merit, not money, and YouTube certainly supports the trend.

In fact, YouTube’s parent company Google is probably creating Vevo just to satisfy UMG’s demands, and if the other labels want to have a cut of the advertising revenue, then Google will be happy to comply. The views for copyrighted music videos amount to only a small fraction of the total views YouTube gets, and so far there has been no indication as to whether Hulu or Vevo will support independent productions. So Google is basically just staying out of legal trouble and continuing business as usual.

There will be plenty of great artists featured on both Hulu and Vevo, but ultimately the money will go to the same pockets. Conversely, there will be many equally good independent music videos and musicians that won’t be on either site. So, when considering which site to use, remember that the real competition isn’t between Hulu and Vevo, it’s between the four major labels that are backed by performing-rights organizations and lawsuits, and the independent artists who don’t get their own dedicated distribution platforms.

Who will you choose? Do you think about your clicks as revenue for artists and labels?

Source: Bloomberg, Statesman