What happned between google and youtube?

[MoE70]

can someone explain what google and youtube have done. i heard googlebought youtube for shares or something so youtube didnt get any money. can someone explain what this means im not too google with business. does it means youtube owns google as well now?

[techgnome]

No... Google owns youtube.... that's what it means.... the guys that started youtube got rich.... that's what happened.

-tg

[MoE70]

yeah but what does it mean to be paid with shares

[mendhak]

Shares are a part of the company in terms of 'ownership'. To own a google share is to own a certain miniscule percentage of google. Google and Youtube exchanged shares, but in such a way that at least 51% of youtube's shares are now owned by google (hence ownership of youtube), while this payment was done in turn, by google shares, but not enough for youtube's owners to own google. Just enough so that if they were to sell right now, they'd get their billion.

[mendhak]

On the other hand, if google's stocks were to crash in price, the youtube owners would be in for a nasty, nasty shock.

[MoE70]

thanks for clearing that up. looks like the youtube guys arnt retiring after all

[MartinLiss]

thanks for clearing that up. looks like the youtube guys arnt retiring after all

Unless there is something written into the deal that specifically disallows it there is nothing stopping them from selling their shares via the stock market.

[Shaggy Hiker]

They'd be mad to hold a single stock like that, though, so I would assume that they diversify.

[mendhak]

http://www.wired.com/news/columns/0,...l?tw=rss.index