In a move to bolster its search engine revenue, Google has shifted a key executive from the YouTube division.
Ben Ling left Facebook in August of 2008 after 11 months with the company to do big things at Google. He moved into the YouTube offices in San Bruno California with the mission to help monetize the world’s biggest video site. As YouTube celebrated its 5th anniversary today, clearly signs are in place that things are moving in the right direction.
YouTube monetizes a billion videos per week, partner ad revenue tripled in 2009 and 94 percent of AdAge’s top 100 advertisers advertised on YouTube. Ling can take some credit for those numbers.
But a more pressing issue has come up. Google’s search share is flat and its main money machine needs to find new ways to churn out cash.
Enter Ben Ling again. Ling updated his LinkedIn profile last month to acknowledge that he’s taken a lead role in the search department.
His new role is entitled “Product Management Director of Search Properties.” The description says that he’s now moved into the Mountain View HQ to to help ‘monetize’ the rest of Google’s properties, including Images, Video, News, Finance, Books, Blogs, Real-Time, Alerts, and Trends.
The move is a big increase in responsibility for Ling but with his track record at YouTube, he’s certainly up to the task.