Online videos may rescue music labels

Since MTV started in 1981 with Video Killed the Radio Star, record labels have treated videos as a marketing expense. Now, with album sales plummeting, music companies aim to make them a source of profit.

That's the goal of Universal Music Group's venture with Google Inc's YouTube. Vevo.com, a new site announced last week, will stream videos from artists such as U2, Beck and the Rolling Stones. YouTube will then split advertising revenue with Universal, the world's largest music company.

The agreement is a sign of progress in the record industry's efforts to make money from YouTube, the biggest online video service. Internet ads could help the labels rebound from a 45 percent plunge in US album sales since 2000, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Working with YouTube also may let the industry rein in the wild-west nature of online music.