China’s YouTube has found a place for itself in the country’s broadcasting industry as the host of submissions made by hundreds of contestants in a nationwide talent contest.
Youku has partnered with satellite TV firms and record labels on Legendary Me, a televised music competition.
It says videos it is hosting of would-be superstars auditioning to camera have been viewed more than 15 million times since March.
http://player.youku.com/player.php/sid/XMzc4NjIzMDQw/v.swf
http://player.youku.com/player.php/sid/XMzgzMjQ0NzA0/v.swf
Mirroring YouTube’s own journey, Youku and rival Yudou have each been signing TV and movie content over the last couple of years, in addition to their core user-uploaded videos. In March, they proposed merging in a deal valuing Tudou at $ 1 billion.
Youku’s just-released annual report disclosed a 27.3 million RMB ($ 4.3 million) annual net loss on 142.6 million RMB ($ 22.6 million) revenue.
Youku also just gained an Internet Publication License, required for online services to operate in China, from China’s government, allowing it to publish over web and mobile.
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