Sponsored channels, whereby companies brand vertical segments of content, are all the rage from online communities like YouTube to traditional media such as Reuters. Yesterday, SlideShare, the popular slide sharing application, launched a new service called Channels that allows companies to custom brand microsites within the professional slide sharing community. The majority of SlideShare's community are business decision makers, and businesses can now sponsor topical channel content (presentations, whitepapers and webinars) or create branded channels. The company has signed up the likes of Adobe, Ogilvy, Microsoft, Razorfish Marketing and The White House for the service.

“Our vision is to build a new type of advertising that both community and advertisers will embrace," said Rashmi Sinha, CEO & co-founder of SlideShare. "With Channels, LeadShare and Adshare we provide integrated solutions for social media with direct business results."

The hope is that SlideShare Channels will allow brands to engage more deeply with the community's mostly affluent, professional audience.

"With SlideShare Channels, I can finally help the brands I work with to unlock the real potential of their existing content to reach their customers and generate leads" said Rohit Bhargava, SVP Digital Strategy - Ogilvy 360 Digital Influence.

Channels can be fully customized, with pricing ranging depending on the businesses’ preferred layout.