CHINA'S first overseas-listed online video website, Youku, reported improved revenue in the fourth quarter of last year on higher advertising receipts while its net loss shrank in the same period.

Income surged 183 percent from the year-earlier period to US$23.1 million, the Beijing-based company said in a statement yesterday.

It narrowed its net loss by 18 percent from a year ago to US$5.7 million, or US$1.61 per share.

"The improving income is likely to ease investor worries about its previous losses and indicates the business model is about to make a profit very soon," Goldman Sachs said in a research note yesterday.

Youku expects revenue in the first three months this year to grow between 105 percent and 115 percent year on year.

Most of its income now comes from advertising. Viewers must watch 15 seconds to 30 seconds of advertisements before they can watch any video clips on Youku.