NHL Takes Control of its YouTube Image

While some leagues fight tooth and nail to protect their proprietary interests, hockey can't afford to make media enemies. That's why the NHL has cut a deal with YouTube. The league "will provide the YouTube community and hockey fans in general, a wide range of free, short-form entertaining clips," within 24 hours of their original broadcast.

Peter Forsberg's spin-a-rama or Alex Ovechkin's latest showstopper should be available at www.youtube.com/NHL by the end of this month. But it also means that from now on, the NHL gets to decide what's a highlight and what isn't. Hockey fans can still select and post their favorite clips. But Big Brother will be watching.

Through its partnership with YouTube, the NHL will be able to take advantage of YouTube’s “Claim Your Content” program, which features an advanced content identification architecture and reporting system allowing the league to identify and protect its copyrighted content. The league will have the option to remove the content from YouTube or allow it to remain and share the revenue from the advertising placed adjacent to the content.

It looks like hockey on YouTube is about to get a lot less interesting. Will Derek Boogard's uppercut and Todd Bertuzzi's ugliest moment still be online six weeks from now?

• See NHL Highlights Online - Current sources include Versus, TSN, ESPN and NHL.com.