• by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, February 26, 2007

Google is gearing up to expand a test of its video syndication, adding Dow Jones and Condé Nast to its roster of publishers, according to a report in today's New York Times.

Last month, Google said it intended to also syndicate clips from Sony BMG and Warner Music. But it wasn't generally known until today that Dow Jones and Condé Nast were participating in the program.

Google's video syndication program, launched on a test basis last August, allows companies to spread their clips to other sites while also monetizing them via ads.

The initiative started with clips from MTV Networks shows like "Laguna Beach," "Sponge Bob Squarepants," and the MTV Video Music Awards, which reportedly were distributed to sites like Lyrics.com and Purevolume.com. MTV Networks sells the ads, while revenue is split three ways.

The addition of traditional publishers like Dow Jones and Condé Nast comes at a time of increasingly frosty relations between Google and TV companies. Not only did Viacom recently demand that Google/YouTube remove 100,000 clips, but CBS also apparently is reconsidering its video deal with Google/YouTube.

One possible reason for the deals with companies like Dow Jones or Condé Nast: Known primarily for print as opposed to video, these firms see a greater need than video-centric TV companies to form alliances to distribute their clips.