An investment group with significant ties to Hulu may now be ready to help a similar site launch in China.  A report’s connected Providence Equity Partners to both Baidu and a new online video destination.

Let’s start with a little history.  Once upon a time (or in mid-2007, to be more exact), Providence Equity Partners invested $100 million in Hulu, giving it a ten percent stake that it holds to this day.  Providence Equity Partners has also established links to entertainment entities like Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Warner Music Group, and the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network.

It seems to have a knack for investing in important organizations, then.

Which might bring us to its latest undertaking.  Reuters reported this morning that Providence Equity Partners and Baidu will "set up an online video channel in China," and that the pair "will team up to create a fund to buy licensed content to show on the channel."

Also, "The channel . . . is set to launch in the first quarter."

So it shouldn’t be long before more details surface and we can make guesses about whether this video site is likely to sink or float.

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