NBC Ditches YouTube

NBC has pulled its YouTube promotional channel, along with its content, to support the network’s joint venture with News Corp., a video site called Hulu.

YouTube and NBC had an arrangement spanning back to June 2006. This arrangement came into being to resolve disputes in late 2005 regarding NBC content appearing on YouTube.

Sixteen months later, NBC is taking its ball and going home to Hulu, which is in its own trademark battle with established digital publishing company Lulu.com.

"NBC informed us on Friday that they were taking down their branded channel and clips," said Ricardo Reyes, a YouTube spokesperson. "Our relationship with NBC was a YouTube success story, so we hope NBC decides to post more original content and stay engaged with our users."

That doesn’t seem likely to happen in the near future, though. Hulu is set to launch within a couple of weeks, and will feature full-length episodes of popular TV shows like "The Riches" and "24."