READY FOR VEVO TV?

The Vevo-MTV showdown heated up further when the UMG- and Sony-owned video platform announced plans to launch a conventional TV network that would go head-to-head with MTV Hits and Fuse, the N.Y. Post reported.

Vevo CEO Rio Caraeff told media reporter Claire Atkinson that the TV channel would offer a mix of programming, live events and archived performances.

While Vevo has no deals with the cable or satellite-TV firms at this stage, it’s working closely with the makers of web-enabled TVs, set-top boxes and other devices.

The service is expected to be part of Sony's new HDTV set, which will also incorporate Google TV. "We're partnering with the leading manufacturers, and the people that make the boxes that go around them," said Caraeff, who’s also speaking to Apple TV about Vevo apps.

He also aims to make the Vevo service more interactive. For example, viewers will be able to pwersonalize their Vevo TV experience based on their own musical tastes, a la Pandora online.

Caraeff told Atkinson he expects the service, which launched nine months ago, to be profitable by year three, primarily through ad revenue and sponsorships.

But some industry insiders found it far-fetched that a music-video TV channel could provide a significant windfall in this era, pointing out that MTV moved from videos to mostly longer-form programming years ago. One former Viacom executive said Vevo just "doesn't pay as an advertising proposition," adding that it's subscription revenue from cable operators that has kept MTV's music-video channels afloat.