Roughly 16 months into its official relationship with YouTube, NBC Universal (NYSE: GE) has pulled the plug in favor of Hulu, its video distribution JV with News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) A NBC spokeswoman confirmed the move, first mentioned by Valleywag and said it was to support Hulu. The JV is still slated for private beta launch this month. The channel-yanking comes after the fall season launch is well underway.

NBC launched the YouTube channel in June 2006 after the breakout success of “Lazy Sunday” showed the network the power of viral video, providing a legit flow of video.

• NBC-YouTube Hook-up Is Official