Burbank, Calif. - In a shift of strategy, Warner Bros. has announced plans to finance a slate of its own original Internet programming, rather than asking advertisers to cover production costs, The New York Times reported.

"In trying to get the business off the ground, we ended up in a bit of a dance with advertisers about what various projects would look like," Craig Hunegs, Warner Bros.' executive vice president for business development, told The Times.

Warner is now investing nearly $3 million upfront on the development some 24 projects for the Web, from producers including Jim Henson Productions; Telepictures Productions; Warner Bros. Animation; film and TV director/producer McG; comedians Joey & David; videogame/film/TV producer Jason Hall; and artist Alex Pardee.

"As I've often said, at our heart, Warner Bros. is a content company," said Bruce Rosenblum, president of Warner Bros. Television Group.

"For the Television Group's digital strategy to truly be realized, we are focusing equally on the creation of original programming specifically designed for the digital market and developing advertiser-supported targeted distribution strategies."

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http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/10/business/media/10warner.html