New study: YouTube’s 2009 expenses will cost Google nearly $300M less than some analysts think

Guessing game: How much money is YouTube losing?

SAN FRANCISCO — Paying the bills for Internet video leader YouTube isn’t as much of a burden on Google as some analysts think.

That’s the thesis of a new study to be released Wednesday by RampRate, which specializes in managing technology costs.

RampRate projects YouTube’s operating losses this year at $174.2 million. That’s well below the $470.6 million estimated by two Credit Suisse analysts in an April research report that became a hot topic on Wall Street and the Internet.

The dueling forecasts are the latest twist in a guessing game that has intrigued investors since Mountain View, Calif.-based Google Inc. bought YouTube for $1.76 billion in late 2006.

Google has acknowledged YouTube isn’t profitable, but has refused to provide any specifics, leaving it to outsiders to figure out.