Youtube to be selling new movies.

YouTube had to grow up eventually, didn’t it? It could pretend, for a while at least, under the ownership of Internet titan Google that it was still all about “you,” but the future is a pesky thing and keeps bugging for answers about sustainability. Several published reports are indicating that YouTube is in talks with Hollywood studios to begin offering rentals of “newer” movies as paid content. Just what the world needs–another pay movie provider. Apple, Netflix, Amazon and a multitude of pay TV/video-on-demand providers are already in that game.

To YouTube’s advantage, it can bring a name and a rep to that market that is at least as well known as anyone else’s, and perhaps could have more pull with a certain brand on Internet user. Also, its user base is gigantic. But, if paid content from Hollywood is the new attraction, maybe that name should be changed: NotYouTube? TheirTube? Or maybe two different brands–For-Profit YouTube and Non-Profit YouTube.

Chrome OS and Android may “merge” into one in the future.

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Speaking at a press conference this week, ostensibly to discuss the new netbook platform but which covered various points of Google’s business, Schmidt and company founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page discussed the open-nature of the new platform. While in their initial blog post about Chrome OS they indicated that it and Android would remain separate, and that “choice will drive innovation for the benefit of everyone, including Google”, there now seems to be signs that the two will shift from parallel to integrated projects.

The trio also discussed the nature of open-source software and how they do not envisage Chrome OS as a direct competitor to Windows. In fact, Schmidt said, “Microsoft is welcome to put Internet Explorer on our operating system,” but that “it’s highly unlikely they would do it. They would have to port it and the port is not trivial … the ball is in their court.” Referring to Google’s well-known “do no evil” pledge, he highlighted the fact that because Chrome is open-source “even if we had an evil moment [to block out Microsoft], we would be unsuccessful.”

The first netbooks running Google Chrome OS are expected in the second half of 2010.

Google To Launch Chrome OS, Taking Aim At Windows

Even as Microsoft begins to make some headway against Google in Internet search, Redmond now finds the tables turned in the PC operating system business.

In short, Google has targeted a new market: Windows.

In a post to its corporate blog late Tuesday, the company announced a new project called the Google Chrome OS – the company’s “attempt to re-think what operating systems should be.”

The company said Google Chrome OS “is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks.” The new OS consists of a new windowing system on top of a Linux kernel, the company said.

Later this year, Google said, it will open-source the code. Netbooks running the software will be available in the 2010 second half, according to Google, which said it is already talking to partners about the project.

Google already has developed one operating system – Android, which is targeted at mobile phones, and which itself is expected to be used in some netbooks. The company said the two are separate projects.

“Google Chrome OS is a new project, separate from Android,” the company said on the blog post. “Android was designed from the beginning to work across a variety of devices from phones to set-top boxes to netbooks. Google Chrome OS is being created for people who spend most of their time on the web, and is being designed to power computers ranging from small netbooks to full-size desktop systems. While there are areas where Google Chrome OS and Android overlap, we believe choice will drive innovation for the benefit of everyone, including Google.”

Google said Chrome OS is intended to be fast, simple and secure. “The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way, and most of the user experience takes place on the web,” the company reports. “And as we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don’t have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates. It should just work.”

The company said the software will work on both x86 and ARM chips.

SonyEricsson plans and Android Phone

The rise of the Android continues, as Sony Ericsson and Nokia are both preparing Android-powered mobile phones. Pictures and details have leaked of a Sony Ericsson handset named Rachel, while The Guardian reports Nokia is planning to unveil a handset at the Nokia World conference in September.

The Sony Ericsson handset is codenamed Rachel, so expect legions of copycat haircuts on other phones. Or maybe it’s named after Rachael, the robotic love interest in Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? and Blade Runner. Android, get it?

Rachel is built on Qualcomm Snapdragon QSD8250 platform, with a processor speed of up to 1GHz. If you want to stroke Rachel you’re in luck, as it’s reported to sport a giant 102mm (4-inch) touchscreen. It also includes an 8-megapixel camera complete with autofocus. More good news: there’s a 3.5mm headphone connector as well as the mini-USB port.

HTC is currently top droid with three phones, including the forthcoming Hero, wizardly Magic and the original G1. Other manufacturers appear to have been on a break from the Google operating system, but that’s set to change with the new phones from Son Eric, and possibly Nokia. Nokia has denied the rumour — after all the company has only recently launched its own app platform, the Ovi store. Meanwhile, Dell is rumoured to be developing an Android-based iPod touch-killer.

Also, possible SonyEricsson Android interface is spotted on unofficial SonyEricsson Blog:

Android 1.5 on the way

Well what do you know, the next release of the Android platform will not be Android 1.2, but Android 1.5.

An early-look Android 1.5 SDK (software development kit) has just been officially announced, and it’s now ready for all the developers out there who want to try it.

The Android 1.5 SDK is “based on the cupcake branch from the Android Open Source Project” and comes with Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) for several features, including soft keyboards, speech recognition, live folders and home screen widgets.

Of course, the APIs you’ll find in this particular Android 1.5 SDK are not finalized (since it’s an early-look version), so you should not release applications based on it.

It’s not clear yet when and how the 1.5 version of the OS will be available for the Android smartphones that are currently on the market.

However, if you want to download the early Android 1.5 SDK, you can get it from here.

Google bringing pay-per-view to YouTube

So far, YouTube has been a free, advertising-supported service, but Google plans to build payment mechanisms into its video-sharing site.

“With respect to how it’ll get monetized, our first priority is on the advertising side. We do expect over time to see micropayments and other forms of subscription models coming as well,” said Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt after the company reported first-quarter profits Thursday. “We’ll be announcing additional things in that area literally very, very soon.”

The change in tactics will mark a new era for Google’s attempt to make money from YouTube. The service is tremendously popular, but also tremendously expensive to operate, and Google has been working hard for months to come up with a more successful financial formula for sharing video.

Schmidt’s words came at the same time Google is signing a partnership to show Sony Pictures’ full-length movies and build a section of YouTube devoted to professionally made content.

Google has had fractious relations with companies that produce video, but that’s changing now, Schmidt said. “We are making very good progress now with small, medium, and even large-scale studios,” he said.