slice of the social-networking pie.

More than 100 million video clips are viewed every day on the YouTube website.

User-generated content

The new deal will mean that VCast users, who pay $15 a month to watch and download video to their mobile, will have access to a limited number of approved videos from YouTube.

In contrast, the web version of the site allows users to access almost any video for free.

The Verizon tie-up also means users will be able to upload short clips captured on their mobile phones.

Previously, posting content from mobile handsets to YouTube required an email address but subscribers to Verizon's wireless media service Vcast will now be able to upload content using a five-digit short code.

YouTube, the online video sharing site which was recently bought by Google, had said it hoped to expand its service beyond computers.

The deal with Verizon is part of a limited trial for the fashionable site on the small screen.

The popularity of social networking sites such as YouTube and MySpace are increasingly attracting the eyes of mobile phone operators, desperate to increase revenues as the price of making calls continues to fall.

"The user-generated content space is a very important sector in media," said Robin Chan, marketing director at Verizon Wireless.

UK mobile phone operators have yet to enter such a tie-up although they do offer their own networking sites.

O2 has launched LookAtMe which allows users to download video clips posted by other users and 3's Kink Kommunity sees thousands of postings each day.