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By Cara Garretson
Video service provider Episodic has been acquired by Google, as the Internet giant continues snapping up independent companies to strengthen its varied offerings.
Episodic, based in San Francisco, describes itself as a “platform for broadcasting, measuring and monetizing live and on-demand video content to the Web or any Web-enabled device.” Google likely acquired the company to bolster its YouTube service; TechCrunch has reported that Episodic staff will join YouTube workers in their San Bruno, Calif. offices this week.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The announcement was made on a blog post on the Episodic Web site Friday, promising that existing customers would see no interruption of service. The company is suspending new client signups until the transition to Google is worked out.
“At Episodic, we have always felt that these are the very early days of online video and that there is far more growth to be had,” said the blog. “From our earliest discussions with Google, it was clear that the teams shared this belief and together we obviously see huge potential in online video. Our product visions were also complementary and together we will continue to produce innovative video technology for our customers and their viewers.”
The blog adds that both Google and Episodic are dedicated to creating a great experience for viewers, which some may argue isn’t always the case with YouTube videos that tend to pause repeatedly during play. And, if Google is looking to monetize its video platform as Episodic does by hosting content for publishers, marketers, and advertisers, the quality of the service quickly becomes an issue.
Episodic, which counts movie channel Showtime among its customers, provides a real-time, live-streaming content platform for Web-based and mobile video. It also offers a playback platform that doesn’t require plug-ins for viewing, as well as real-time video audience analytics to gauge viewer behavior, said company officials. The platform is capable of serving ads, as well as integrating third-party ad-serving services, and can process credit-card transactions. The company also offers tools to manage video libraries.
For Google, Episodic marks the fifth acquisition this year. The company has purchased DocVerse, which makes tools that let users collaborate with Microsoft Office documents on the Web; photo-editing site Picnik; reMail, which makes e-mail applications; and social search company Aardvark.
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