YouTube enlists help for original programs

Asssociated Press

CULVER CITY, Calif.

YouTube is enlisting Hollywood’s help to reach a generation of viewers more familiar with smartphones than TV remotes.

The online-video giant is aiming to create original programming with the help of some of the top names in traditional TV. The Google-owned site is spreading its wealth among producers, directors and other filmmakers, using a $100 million pot of seed money it committed last fall. The fund represents YouTube’s largest spending on original content so far.

YouTube believes it is laying groundwork for the future. While the number of traditional TV watchers has leveled off in recent years, more and more people are watching video on mobile phones, tablets and computers, especially the 18- to 34-year-old age demographic that advertisers covet.

The idea is to create 96 additional YouTube channels, which essentially are artists’ home pages, where viewers can see existing video clips and click “subscribe” to be notified when new content goes up.

Well-funded videos by a select roster of stars likely are to be more watchable than the average YouTube fare of cute cats and webcam monologues.