Google To Launch 25 YouTube Channels

YouTube has said it would start creating some professionally-produced video channels and has invested  more than $100 million in cash advances to get some of the content produced, the Wall Street Journal reports.


YouTube thinks the new channels will allow it to create a better environment for advertisers who have been reluctant to advertise around user-generated videos. Google is expected to share ad revenue with channels at some point. YouTube to launch 25 channels 

The 25 or so new channels that will offer professionally produced news, information and entertainment. Partners expected in the the first round include Warner Bros., ShineReveille, BermanBraun, FremantleMedia and skate boarder Tony Hawk.



Additional potential partners include Everyday Health,  Iconic Entertainment and DECA, which creates online-video content for women.

Verso Entertainment may produce content for YouTube related to sports.  YouTube to Launch 25 Professional Video Channels


It might be premature to start thinking of YouTube as a "cable TV" distributor, anymore than it makes sense to think about Hulu or Netflix currently representing such an alternative. But things are heading that way, some would say.