YouTube, the leading online video sharing site, is planning to pay creators of original content a cut of ad sales, says chief executive Chad Hurley on Saturday speaking to journalists at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Hurley said the company is moving in that direction. He gave no details or even a time frame. But if the past is any indication, Hurley’s public hints about new directions are likely to be followed up with action within weeks. YouTube’s announcement to offer a wireless version with Verizon Wireless is just one example.

They’re hardly the first to offer to pay users for original videos which attract the most users. Revver.com, Metacafe.com, and Dovetail.tv are just a few rival online video sites that consider sharing video to be synonymous with sharing revenues. Revver’s Diet Coke/Mentos campaign was among the most high profile last year.

But YouTubes big viewership — some 100 million streams a day — could give the pay-for-play movement a boost.

Read Reuters’ story on how others are getting paid for their online videos here.
(Photo: YouTube.com)