SingTel took prime position on the new site’s homepage, by happy coincidence with an ad for Android – also owned by YouTube parent Google Inc. SingTel is also launching its dedicated channel, with content being specially produced for the medium.
Malaysia Airlines will be taking the masthead tomorrow, with a representative telling Campaign that the national carrier sees YouTube as a good medium to reach out to other countries.
Last Thursday’s launch in the Philippines was well-received by media agencies who praised the amount of advertising real-estate up for grabs on the local sites, adding that advertising opportunities had been until now limited to Google AdWords.
Google’s MD for Southeast Asia sales and operations Julian Persaud told Campaign that it’s good to be able to finally meet high demand for advertising on its sites.
He went on to say that for Singapore, advertising on YouTube’s mobile-optimised site would be opened up very soon. According to IPSOS, Singapore has the highest penetration of smartphones in the world, at 62 per cent.
Adam Smith, director of product management at Google, outlined the YouTube Partner Program, by which official partners can monetize their content via advertising.
“Hundreds of our partners around the world make $100,000 a year, thousands make $1,000 per month,” said Smith. “Through localising YouTube in Singapore, the site will deliver more of the content Singaporeans want to see.”
Among the content partners present at the launch included Interactive SG, creators of online reality show Angel’s Gate, the Composer and Authors Society of Singapore Ltd (COMPASS), Valleyarm/Music Services Asia, World Sports Group, Refinery Media and Oak3.