Unlike Google, Borat has figured out how to make money off YouTube

How Borat Exploited Google
The hottest joke about the so-called Web 2.0 reads: "What is the difference between Google and Borat? The latter knows how to make money from YouTube." Evgeny Morozov argues that major studios will soon rethink their approach to the blogosphere and will allow for more leeway — especially when it comes to reposting copyrighted multimedia content.
By Evgeny Morozov/The Globalist

Google's feelings towards the famed Kazakh reporter might not be immediately obvious after watching "Borat! Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan," the new mockumentary from the distinguished agent provocateur Sacha Baron Cohen, who earned his name making "Da Ali G show."

The virtually free viral marketing campaign surrounding the movie — much of it available on YouTube — has taken full advantage of the web buzz. The sheer number of video clips related to Borat on YouTube (which Google owns) is over 2,000, with comments running somewhere in the six-digits.

Using YouTube to their advantage

To the delight of everyone involved, several deleted episodes and lengthy real scenes had been posted online well before the movie premiere, raising everyone's appetite for the actual release of the movie.

One should give credit to Sacha Cohen and 20th Century Fox, his studio, for finally understanding that YouTube is a complement — rather than a threat — to their work. They seem to get it: YouTube will not replace the real thing, at least not in the short term.

Therefore, instead of chasing every Internet user who dared to republish clips from the movie with a lawsuit, they encouraged all this buzzing on YouTube, releasing more and more content online.

Translating eyeballs into profits

Therefore, it is not surprising that the movie's highly successful debut on November 3 caused it to catapult to the top of the charts. Borat is that rare case where eyeballs — the favorite, but often misleading benchmark of success on today's Internet — can smoothly translate into profits.

However, while Google is left with the eyeballs, it is Borat who takes the check home. Google should duly thank him for making the imbalances of YouTube's current business model so apparent. Now, it has plenty of lessons to draw upon.

Lessons for Google

First of all, it needs to develop the viral marketing features that are inherent to YouTube, but are only in their infancy when it comes to making money.

The mix of video clips, blogging and community feedback can be packaged as a very appealing viral marketing offer to clients in Hollywood and elsewhere.

These big clients are as tired of spending hefty budgets on traditional and largely unmeasured marketing as those who prefer Google ads to conventional advertising.

Rethinking copyrights

With the help of millions of fans, Borat has effectively exploited YouTube — without paying anything to its owner. On the other hand, had Google and 20th Century Fox acted in tandem to promote it, the results would have been even more splendid.

This means that major studios will soon rethink their approach to the blogosphere. Instead of being overly restrictive and patronizing, studios would allow for more leeway — especially when it comes to reposting copyrighted multimedia content.

A two-minute audience

It is important to recognize Borat for what it is — the consummate movie of the YouTube generation. Befitting its protagonist, it is amateurish, childish and — as is often the case with popular Web videos — hilariously gross.

It is tailored to fit the short attention span of today's young people, who are more comfortable watching a two-minute clip on YouTube than spending two hours trying to unriddle a complicated plot.

It is is easy to imagine how Borat can be repackaged into 30 short episodes that would be among YouTube's most-viewed clips for years.

Importance of dollars

However, we should not forget that the full-time Borat still debuted in real cinemas — not online. Perhaps, the world is not yet ready for a Web 2.0 blockbuster. Or it is still ruled by dollars, not eyeballs.

This underscores a much broader problem that Google will need to address with regard to YouTube — the absence of proper compensation to professional posters.

Compensating the posters

Google needs to realize that professional contributors to YouTube will need more compensation for their work than just thousands of online comments.

Eyeballs should translate into profits — not only for big studios, but also for individuals. Right now, they would be better off singing in a local pub than performing on YouTube. The former at least pays a salary.

Thus, the sooner Google finds a way to help people earn a living from YouTube, the sooner it will unleash the creative potential of millions of Internet users, who would not post anything serious there otherwise.

A platform for all

If Google leaves everything as it is, YouTube risks morphing into a bottomless reservoir of boring videos made by people with too much free time and too little artistic talent (for which, however, they often compensate with obscenity).

Avoiding this would require Google to draft a business model that could bridge the needs of professional contributors, big entertainment studios, and regular users — all of whom have an interest in making YouTube work.

If it succeeds, we can easily get hundreds of Borats reporting from all over the world.