Google Inc.'s contract to provide Web search and advertising for MySpace.com and other News Corp. Web properties marks the initial round of what could lead to further deals between them, executives from both companies said yesterday.

“While this is a deal that largely covers search on our sites, we look forward to expanding this relationship to cover other areas of our business,” Peter Chernin, News Corp.'s chief operating officer, said in a telephone interview.

Chernin said News Corp. was open to talking to Google about Google's nascent video advertising search opportunities.

“As Google tries to develop their video search, there may be some opportunities to help them in that development," Chernin told Reuters. “We're very committed to moving our traditional content on to the Web.”

The agreement was signed six hours before it was announced, after months of speculation over whether Google or rivals Yahoo or Microsoft Corp. would win the largest single online advertising contract that was up for grabs – MySpace with its nearly 100 million users.

The Google-News Corp. deal comes one day after Google inked a deal to build a new video advertising system with Viacom Inc.'s MTV Networks in what the companies said could become a model for syndicating video over the Web.

Under the deal, Google has agreed to pay News Corp.'s Fox unit at least $900 million in revenue sharing payments over nearly four years.

Google will supply text-based advertising to MySpace member sites and more than another dozen News Corp./Fox Interactive Web sites. Video advertising, search or syndication are not covered, but could be under future deals, executives said.