Youku.com, a China YouTube-like Website, said yesterday it has secured a venture capital investment of US$40 million, a sign that VCs are still interested in the Chinese online video market although they face strict regulations.

Youku announced that it has raised an additional US$30 million in private equity funding and secured a US$10 million equipment loan, to further cement its position in the market.

Maverick Capital led the financing and all existing investors in the company, including Brookside Capital, Sutter Hill Ventures, Farallon Capital and Chengwei Ventures, have contributed to the investment. The US$10-million equipment loan was provided by Western Technology Investment, which provided venture debt to Google and Facebook, Youku said in a statement yesterday.

The latest deal has seen Youku raise US$80 million in investment so far.

"This investment will enable us to advance the company's rapid growth, expand our sales and marketing network," Victor Koo, president and chief executive of Youku, said in the statement.

Youku attracts over 100 million visitors each month and each user spends about 300 minutes monthly on the portal. It has also attracted over 60 firms to advertise on the site this year.

There are 160 million online video Website users in China, accounting for 75 percent of total netizens. Comparatively, they have a stronger consumption power compared with other netizens, which make them valuable to advertisers, according to the China Internet Network Information Center, a leading Internet research firm.

Tudou.com, often regarded as China's YouTube, is expected to make its first profit next year thanks to increasing advertising income, it said yesterday.

Tudou.com said recently it has secured US$57 million in VC investment.

But the Chinese government has tightened regulations on the sector.

It has issued licenses for online video business to state-owned and some small-scale private Websites.

(Shanghai Daily July 1, 2008)