• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, July 6, 2005

As part part of an aggressive new gambit into online marketing (see related coverage in today's OnlineMediaDaily), DaimlerChrysler has struck a deal to sponsor four new online radio stations created by Yahoo! Music.

The advertising deal for Yahoo's new Listen Now! online radio programming initiative was negotiated last month, but details of the effort were released by the companies on Monday. The buy will align four Chrysler car brands with four stations: The Chrysler SRT on Today's Big Hits; the Chrysler 300 on Smooth Jazz as well as Adult Alternative; and Chrysler convertibles on the Classical station.

Last month, Yahoo! launched a new radio programming effort dubbed Listen Now!, announcing Chrysler as its charter sponsor. The initiative marked Yahoo!'s first radio marketing 'program' and one of the company's largest radio buys to date, according to Yahoo! The Chrysler sponsorship will last until December 2006.

Yahoo!'s online radio service LAUNCHcast drew slightly more U.S. listeners than the AOL Radio Network--2,074,400 to 1,995,700--during an average week in January, according to recent reports by comScore Media Metrix and Arbitron. Microsoft's MSN Radio and WindowsMedia.com together drew 473,000 listeners per week, while Web radio community Live365 attracted 438,000 listeners per week in January.