AOL and Microsoft ink video-content deal

Microsoft and AOL are now partners in the burgeoning video-distribution arena.

AOL content like HuffPost Live, Moviephone, and the Arlington, Va.’s multimedia partners like TMZ and Martha Stewart will be available through Microsoft’s Bing Apps for Windows and Windows Phone and the MSN network. The move shows how large multimedia companies are joining forces to share material to reach more consumers outside their own networks.

AOL has a library of about 900,000 videos. Microsoft’s video platforms, including MSN, have an audience of nearly 450 million. AOL’s video library includes content from all of AOL’s so-called On channels. AOL is also gearing to launch numerous original series, which it will unveil next week. So the deal makes sense, at least in the short-term.

“Microsoft’s suite of devices and services is unmatched, and its loyal audiences are constantly seeking new and refreshed offerings on their platforms. We have an open strategy for distributing our premium content, and we’re proud to partner with Microsoft to enhance their video experience,” Ran Harnevo, AOL’s president for video, said in a release.

Financial terms of the deal are not available. AOL has already signed similar deals with a number of other media properties, including ESPN, the Food Network, and media titan Rupert Murdoch’s Wall Street Journal, for example.

An AOL spokesperson declined to speak on the record.