The company that makes money from everyone's viral videos

A day at work watching YouTube videos:

A guy in a hamster suit falling over at a children’s birthday party also gets the nod. It reminds him of a video his company approved a few weeks ago—Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck performing the Nae Nae. He rejects “Close Call Canoeists.” I kind of like it (especially at 1:45), but he doesn’t.

It may sound like Granzow is wasting time at work, but he’s sifting for gold. And the airy, warehouse-like building of glass and exposed beams where he works is full of people just like him. He’s a researcher at Jukin Media, a small company in Los Angeles that identifies extremely shareable videos, strikes deals with the people who own them, and then licenses the clips.

A fascinating glimpse into the world of licensing and monetising viral videos. Juke Media essentially turns the world into a viral video production sandbox, and sifts the best out for rapid monetisation.