YouTube is doubling down on its investment in original content.
The video site said Sunday that it is expanding with roughly 60 new original channels from the United States, France, the United Kingdom and Germany. New partners include Vice, Grantland, Adam Carolla and Sarah Silverman. The programs will cover a wide array of topics including health, fashion, cooking and cars.
The announcement comes nearly a year after YouTube's parent company Google poured a reported $100 million into creating 100 original channels to try to attract traditional television audiences and advertisers. The company will invest $200 million in production and promotion as turns its attention beyond the domestic market, The New York Times reports.
YouTube's investment comes as streaming services like Netflix and Hulu have ramped up their own original content.
In a blog post announcing its new investment, YouTube said it was pleased with the response to its original channels. It said its top 25 original channels are now averaging more than a million views every week.
Among the programs hitting the U.S. are "ADD Video," a hip-pop channel from Russell Simmons’ Rush Digital Media; “Grantland," a sports channel from ESPN; “JASH," a comedy channel from Sarah Silverman, Michael Cera, Tim & Eric, Reggie Watts and producer Daniel Kellison; “POPSUGAR Girl's Guide," a lifestyle channel from Popsugar; “The Creators Project”: an arts and culture channel from VICE and “Video Podcast Network”: a collection of comic podcasts from Adam Carolla and others.
