Google bring live sport streaming to YouTube

Google have been looking to get into sports broadcasting for some time now, and today they have announced that they will be broadcasting 60 Indian Premier League Cricket matches this March on the YouTube network.

Sure, it may not be the World Cup, but it is still a highly lucrative acquisition. The cricket tournament attracts millions of viewers in the Eastern Hemisphere.

Google and YouTube seem to be using the tournament to test the water for possible future ventures, so perhaps future live football broadcasts isn’t out of the question, providing they can obtain the rights of course.

Bruce Daisley, Google UK’s leader for YouTube and display, said: “We’re keen to see how the community will take to live sport. There’s a real interest in live events, so we’re excited.”

That interest has already been well proven; October 2009’s live YouTube stream of a U2 concert attracted a record-breaking 10m viewers.