Yahoo Plugs In To Current TV

The Yahoo! Current Network launched today as Yahoo complements its marketing blitz with this new service announcement.

Visit the new Yahoo Current Network, and one can catch a look at Bono dragging The Edge out of bed in Miami. We also learn that yoga originated in Wales. The Edge said it, so it has to be true, right?

That humorous look at the rock star life is just one of the Yahoo exclusive pieces appearing on their just-announced segment of Current. This will be what Yahoo described as combining “the best in user submitted videos plus professional, studio-produced content to air side by side in a co-branded environment.”

“Current’s mission has always been to spark a global conversation among young adults. Partnering with Yahoo! helps us advance this mission,” said Current TV co-founder and chairman Al Gore.

Yahoo will combine its star power and online audience to develop a foundation for the new site. It debuts with four content channels, as they noted in a statement about the Yahoo Current Network:

Yahoo! Current Buzz: A daily feature that reflects what the Yahoo! community is searching for, with segments that showcase the best of what’s buzzing around the world and on the Web. Current Buzz is executive produced by Madeleine Smithberg, the Emmy and Peabody-winning co-creator and former executive producer of Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.”

Yahoo! Current Traveler: A globe-spanning bulletin board of video postcards from people’s greatest adventures.
The adventures of Bono and The Edge kicked off on Yahoo! Current Traveler, the first of a three-part short series of videos. The next two parts will air Thursday and Friday, respectively.

It won’t be just the celebrities participating in the new site. User-submitted videos will be part of the Network as well, with each of the four channels combining professional and the best of user-created content.

Every Monday at 5:00 p.m. PT, the best user created submission from each Yahoo! Current channel will air on Current’s television broadcast and its producer will be paid $500 by Current TV. By the end of 2007, Yahoo should have eight channels in operation.

“The new Yahoo! Current Network helps publishers find an audience and be discovered on the biggest network on the planet,” said Dan Rosensweig, chief operating officer for Yahoo!. “In addition, the Yahoo! Current Network allows advertisers to reach highly targeted audiences in an engaging environment.”

Yahoo could use some help with those advertising sales, too.

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David Utter is a staff writer for Murdok covering technology and business.