YouTube Cutting Off API Access To Set-Top Boxes
Posted 11/21/2009 at 10:00am
| by J.R. Bookwalter
Since Google purchased
YouTube, the wildly popular video sharing site has endured a number of growing pains as it works to reinvent itself into a more commercial-minded portal. One of those pains came to light this week as YouTube announced it’s cutting off API access to at least one maker of set-top boxes tied to televisions.
The move comes as YouTube is ramping up its efforts to insert advertising into the service in an effort to monetize content and share the rewards with their creators. But it’s
grim news for companies like Syabas, who makes a set-top box called Popcorn Hour.
Apparently, Syabas and YouTube had a “loose” agreement allowing the company to stream content for free, with YouTube having the freedom to change the terms of the deal at will, which they have now done.
“As a result of Google’s decision, Syabas is no longer allowed to access YouTube through its APIs,” company COO Alex Limberis explains. “To be clear, Syabas is not being singled out. With the exception of a few strategic partners Google has chosen to work with, the company has informed Syabas they are asking all over-the-top device makers that are currently connecting to YouTube content through its APIs to take down the service.”
The API is important, since it’s what allows a device to access the content directly, rather than through its regular Flash-based web interface,
explains Gizmodo. Come December 2nd, Google is shutting off the tap.
For their part, YouTube claims it’s just business as usual. “Since July of 2008, YouTube’s Terms of Service has restricted implementations for television based on our APIs,” a statement reads. “YouTube has been in active discussions with various developers on how best to implement YouTube on set-top boxes and TVs. Companies that have negotiated agreements to use our APIs, like TiVo, Sony, Panasonic and Sony’s PS3 are not impacted.”
“There are several companies, however, that have deployed solutions, like video scraping technology, to circumvent and violate YouTube’s Terms of Service,” the statement concludes.
