Marketing Pilgrim

It looks like News Corp. isn’t taking the chance that its planned YouTube competitor – a joint venture with NBC – will be enough to take on the video sharing giant.

News Corp.’s MySpace (technically a division of Fox Interactive) has announced the launch of a new section within MySpace Video featuring premium content from National Geographic, The New York Times, Reuters and many others.

“The upcoming branded channel launch continues the growing momentum of MySpace Video,” said Jeff Berman, General Manager of Video and SVP of Public Affairs for MySpace. “We’re empowering our partners to customize their own video channels and use them as hubs to create a niche experience for users. Today’s announcement is a sign of things to come for MySpace Video.”

While MySpace Video doesn’t have a wide enough audience to compete head-on with YouTube, it’s certainly a smart move to battle for market share by fracturing YouTube’s dominance. With YouTube already facing competition from more than a dozen video sharing sites, including the anticipated launch of Joost, News Corp. sees the opportunity to steal market share with both MySpace Video and the new venture with NBC.

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