Rumors have been swirling around for a couple of months that Google was going to buy the out-of-nowhere video sharing sensation YouTube, even though Google had their own video sharing site. Well, those rumors have become a reality, as the search engine company has bought the video company for $1.65 billion of Google stock. The YouTube brand will remain intact, as will the company's entire staff of 67, including founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen. You know what that means... high corporate positions and heftly salaries on top of the Google stock. Not a bad haul for a company that has yet to turn a profit.

The interesting aspect of this deal is that Google Video, while not at the level of YouTube, was still a widely-used product. Is this going to get tossed in favor of YT, or will both embedded video systems continue on parallel tracks? The article doesn't say. Either way, Google seems to be following the Microsoft model of competition: if you can't beat 'em, buy 'em.