Is Sony Pictures going to be the first major studio to offer full-length movies on YouTube?

Sony-owned Crackle.com serves shows mainly to its Internet-enabled Sony devices.

T&A: Bloomberg released a report stating that the Entertainment Division of Sony Corp has started talks with Google on the possibility of posting movies on YouTube. While no major U.S. movie studio has yet to do what Sony intends to do, Sony Pictures’ move could open up the potential for other studios to consider doing the same.

According to the report, Sony Pictures has more than 60 vintage films in its archive, including television shows, which it might consider putting on YouTube. As of today, several TV shows and clips from CBS Corp. and eventually Walt Disney, have or would appear on YouTube as well. It is a known fact that most advertisers prefer to relate their pre-roll advertising campaigns to professionally produced content rather than home video material.

Sony Corp. currently owns Crackle.com, a Web TV network and platform dedicated to streaming shows and some movies to Sony-dedicated devices like Internet-enabled VAIOs, PSPs and Bravia TVs. The service was acquired by Sony Pictures in 2006 when it was then known as Grouper.com. A competing site, Hulu.com, is already showing ad-supported feature-length movies (but its service is limited only to the United States). Hulu.com is owned by NBC Universal and News Corp.

The major trend now is that Hollywood studios, wary of film piracy, are tapping into putting older archived films and shows online to gain eyeballs and online ad revenue. There is also the situation of ensuring that this move does not cannibalize on revenues earned from Blu-ray Disc, DVD and payTV sales. The move also indicates YouTube’s direction, as it attempts to move from a primarily user-generated, one-size-fits-all video content platform into a more structured and diversified WebTV-based platform, perhaps emulating some elements similar to Joost.com or Reeltime.com.