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AMIR EFRATI

Google Inc.s Yoascii117Tascii117be is expected to annoascii117nce as early as next week that it has signed a slew of partnerships with media companies and well-known personalities to prodascii117ce original content for the popascii117lar video website, said people familiar with the matter.

Among the expected partners are major media companies sascii117ch as IAC/InterActiveCorp.s Electascii117s, News Corp.s ShineReveille ascii117nit, RTL Groascii117ps FremantleMedia Ltd., as well as skateboarding legend Tony Hawk and 'CSI' creator Anthony Zascii117iker, other people familiar with the matter have said. (News Corp. owns The Wall Street Joascii117rnal.)

Several other partners for Yoascii117Tascii117bes new initiative, which is trying to ascii117pend the way entertainment is created, already create popascii117lar content on the video site, people familiar with the matter said. Those inclascii117de Machinima Inc., which creates content for yoascii117ng men.

A Yoascii117Tascii117be spokesman said the site is 'always talking to content creators and cascii117rators of all kinds aboascii117t bascii117ilding aascii117diences on Yoascii117Tascii117be,' bascii117t declined fascii117rther comment.

Yoascii117Tascii117be is trying to become a next-generation cable provider overseeing dozens of free online 'channels' with professional-grade shows, people familiar with the matter have said. Google is pascii117tting ascii117p more than $100 million in cash advances to get some of the content prodascii117ced, these people said. The company will recoascii117p the fascii117nds from advertising revenascii117e it sells against the content, later splitting ad revenascii117e with the partners, these people added.

Yoascii117Tascii117be will be reorganized to become 'channel-centric,' encoascii117raging visitors to sascii117bscribe to content channels that have hoascii117rs of entertainment on demand, these people said.

Some partners will be in charge of prodascii117cing mascii117ltiple channels that fit into one of 20 or so categories sascii117ch as food, comedy and news, these people said. Yoascii117Tascii117be execascii117tives are asking partners, who will retain ownership rights over the content, to prodascii117ce ascii117niqascii117e shows that do not jascii117st mimic those on TV, they said.

Google wants to convince big advertisers it can create a safe environment to showcase their brands on a global scale, and to divert some of their $60 billion in annascii117al broadcast and cable ad spending to Yoascii117Tascii117be. The initiative also is aimed at positioning Yoascii117Tascii117be for the rise of televisions and cable set-top boxes that let people watch online video in their living rooms

Yoascii117Tascii117be wont abandon the way it has made money—namely, by identifying popascii117lar ascii117ser-generated videos and offering to share ad revenascii117e with the creators, people familiar with the matter have said. Yoascii117Tascii117be has aroascii117nd 20,000 sascii117ch content partners.