This Google You Tube (or, in today's celebrity vernacular, GooTube) marriage really has me thinking about who the winners could possibly be. The way I see it, the are two obvious winners:

1) Facebook - the social networking site with a focus on the college set has probably had its hand immeasurably strengthened in its upcoming negotiations with Yahoo. Yahoo of course will now feel compelled to make a play for this valuable Web 2.0 property as it watches while Google and even Rupert Murdoch's News Corp pick up rival properties.

2) The lawyers. You Tube is a litigation nightmare just waiting to happen. It has experienced a number of small scuffles on the issue of copyright infringement, but the lawyers have largely held off, likely because You Tube's pockets weren't deep enough. That is likely to change very quickly now that there are the deep pockets of Google to pick. Expect an almighty battle to unfold.

A year from now, will this acquisition by Google be seen as a smart move to consolidate its market leading position, or a colossal blunder? Only time, and the lawyers, can tell.