YouTube to Stream Live U2 Gig

Rock band U2 has announced that its concert at the Pasadena Rose Bowl in California on Sunday will be streamed live via YouTube. The gig will be broadcast live via the site to users in 16 countries, including the U.K., the U.S., Australia and Japan, with portions of content remaining available after the event itself.

The opportunities for brands to get involved with the event aren’t exactly clear, but a YouTube spokesperson told me that banner ads will be served next to the live content, with in-stream and overlay ads being sold against the archive content. Users will also be encouraged to make donations to Bono’s RED charity from the dedicated YouTube page.

YouTube hosted its own “YouTube Live” event back in November ’08, from which it streamed live performances from artists such as Akon, will.i.am and Katy Perry. In addition, the Google-owned site announced a deal last week with U.K. broadcaster Channel 4, through which the majority of its content will be available to stream on demand via the site in the U.K.