PluggedIn, a startup that launched back in April 2008 as a Hulu for music videos, is closing up shop. The company has run out of money after negotiations for a $2.5 million Series B funding round fell apart at the last minute. Co-founder Brett O’Brien says that PluggedIn is currently seeking buyers for the company’s technology and team for a price of around $3 million (the company’s cost of investment).

PluggedIn differentiated itself from the plethora of other music sites by offering a library of over 11,000 licensed High Definition music videos, presented in a simple and aesthetically pleasing interface that was not unlike Hulu’s. Users could browse through over a million artist profiles (which were dynamically generated from content on sites like Wikipedia), and could use an app built on Adobe’s AIR platform to automatically generate a user profile featuring their favorite artists. The site also offered some basic social functionality, though it sounds like PluggedIn development was cut short before ultimately launching a “distributed social media player” that could be embedded elsewhere but still retain interaction between site members.

Despite its attractive interface and high quality videos, the site never really took off. This is probably because there are already a number of very well established music communities, like MySpace Music, which have millions of users and many of the same of music videos (albeit at a lower bitrate). HD quality is a nice perk, but most users simply don’t care enough about it to jump ship and join an entirely new community. And unlike some of these competitors, PluggedIn requires the Move Networks video streaming plugin, which raises the barrier of entry (though it is fairly common since it is also used by Fox, The CW, and ABC). That said, PluggedIn’s technology may well be an appetizing prospect for websites that already get a significant amount of traffic.

PluggedIn has been added to the Deadpool.

PluggedIn, a startup that we likened to a Hulu for music videos, has launched a new twice-weekly video program called “PluggedIn 5″ featuring popular video blogger iJustine. The site, whose investors include actor Will Smith, is looking to capitalize on the lack of music content on television channels like MTV and will be presenting a handful of music videos based on a weekly theme alongside originally produced content.

PluggedIn has a large library of music videos secured through deals with the major record labels, many of which are presented in HD or near-HD quality that is much better than what can be seen on YouTube and most other music sites. While PluggedIn launched to the public last April, co-founder Brett O’Brien says that the last six months have primarily been spent on perfecting the site, and that the company is only now beginning to focus on generating traffic and awareness.

Host iJustine has made a name for herself lifecasting and video blogging, and also scored major headlines when she posted her 300 page iPhone bill. The show will be putting on American Idol-like competitions to help choose more VJ’s in the future.

It seems that music sites are increasingly using original video content as a way to differentiate themselves from the many well established sites that are already available. Earlier this month we saw the launch of LP33.tv, a music site/music label hybrid that has a heavy emphasis on studio produced and live concert video content.

Alongside the show’s launch, PluggedIn is introducing a new homepage and is also releasing an Adobe AIR application that will allow users to automatically update their profiles with their favorite artists based on music files on their hard drive.

Here’s a sample of the new series:

http://www.prnewswire.com/mnr/mnr_lib/200808/players/player-single.swf?job=35633

It’s time to make room for one more, and it has the potential to be big. Pluggedin, a music video and community site that sees itself as a Hulu for music, has just launched in public beta. The site’s biggest selling point is its high quality video content, featuring music videos from labels including EMI, Sony BMG, and Universal Music Group, along with a number of independent labels. Pluggedin is hoping to add the last of the ‘big four’ labels, Warner Music, in the near future.

The Hulu comparison is an apt one. The site is very clean, video quality is generally much better than what’s found on Youtube, and the amount of content is impressive, though there are some noticeable gaps. At launch the site features over 10,000 available videos, but most of them are not available in true HD quality (largely because existing footage is not hi-def). Pluggedin hopes that as the site gains popularity, content providers will have a greater incentive to film music videos in HD.

Pluggedin does a good job integrating with other sites on the web. Users are provided with direct links to Amazon and iTunes if they’d like to purchase a video or song they’ve just listened to. And the site has formed a number of partnerships with merchandisers, including Hot Topic for clothing and Thumbplay for mobile ringtones. All of this is presented in unobtrusive menus that don’t detract from the experience at all.

The site also features profiles for over a million musicians, including those that don’t have any videos on the site. Profiles are dynamically generated using content from a number of sources, including All Music Guide, Last.FM, and Wikipedia. And while these pages don’t feature any ‘HD-quality’ material, they do provide a list of each artist’s music videos found elsewhere on the internet, all of which play seamlessly in the page.

Despite all of these features, the site still has a few issues. Searching for specific videos can be tricky – it seems that users can only search by artist name, not song title. And for a site that promotes its video quality, there are surprisingly few videos available in HD at launch (though this is mostly a fault of content providers). And videos cannot be embedded into other sites, a major obstacle standing in the way of viral growth. And the biggest issue of all: Videos are not viewable outside of the U.S. and Canada.

The social networking aspect is minimal, but sufficient for sharing music between friends. It’s a great timewaster – clicking through random music has never been this fun. And the playlist feature be will great for impromptu parties. As long as PluggedIn continues to add content and doesn’t go overboard with their ads, this site will be one to watch.