The Apprentice hires Yahoo!

Yahoo! has been hired to power an online version of the hit series “The Apprentice,” marking the online media giant’s first partnership with a primetime network. Yahoo will be hosting the official Web site for the second and third seasons of the reality television program “The Apprentice.” Yahoo and Mark Burnett Productions, the show’s producer, will announce additional reality-show collaborations in the near future.

As the centerpiece of the content and advertising partnership, Yahoo is hosting the official “Apprentice” Web site; the site will also be available through Yahoo TV and the SBC Yahoo DSL front page. The official site launched with the first episode of the second season of “The Apprentice” on September 9.

In addition to hosting “The Apprentice” site, Yahoo is selling advertising on the site and integrating exclusive content from the show across the Yahoo network. After each television broadcast episode, 40 minutes of video footage will be featured on the site. The exclusive video content will be edited for an online audience and will not appear on television.

One of the contestants, Sam Solovey, fired by Donald Trump during the first season of “The Apprentice” is contributing a weekly column to the site with play-by-play commentary on the second season. The site also offers photos, bios, episode and contestant information, and a “You’re Fired” audio download for Yahoo Messenger, Yahoo’s instant-messaging platform.