By Rory Cellan-Jones BBC industry correspondent

BT wants to tap into the rising demand for user-generated content

The UK's BT has teamed up with two US entrepreneurs whose Podshow Network has won an audience of millions.

Together, they will launch a UK version called BT PodShow.

Podshow boss Ron Bloom said the site took off because there is a huge demand from users who are "sick of TV, sick of radio and want their own programming."

It now has 60,000 podcasts featuring video and music - some made by amateurs, other by established media companies.

Adam Curry, co-founder of Podshow, said "everyone has the right to express themselves creatively - over the past year we have helped many people in the States to become media stars".

'Taste and decency'

BT says the UK version will be inviting individuals, established artists and mainstream media companies to contribute material.

The best of the content may then be featured on BT Vision, the new broadband television service the telecoms company is promising to launch this autumn.

Video sites on the internet have enjoyed explosive growth in the last year, with YouTube leading the way.

The internet is changing the way consumers access their media

Its diet of quirky amateur clips has quickly won a huge audience, with 65,000 videos uploaded every day.

Podbox is a slightly different concept, aiming to feature more crafted content and promising advertising deals to those who can win a big audience for their podcasts.

The content ranges from Geekbrief, a podcast whose creators have given up their day jobs to work full-time on their gadget show, to weekly bulletins from a family about their toddler's activities.

There are risks for both BT and Podshow in their deal. BT's image could suffer if podcasts feature offensive or unauthorised material.

But Gavin Patterson, MD of BT's consumer division, said there would be "nothing illegal" on the site.

"There is a clear taste and decency policy," he said.

For Podshow the danger is that the young and unconventional audience which might be attracted to the site could be put off by the association with an ageing giant like BT.