Chinese online video site Youku now gets as many daily video views as YouTube did when it was bought by Google, signaling the startup—or at least the space—could be on track for an acquisition this year.

Like its American cousin YouTube, Shanghai-based Youku thrives off of user-posted videos and now receives 100 million daily video views and 12 million daily unique visitors, according to the company, which released on Wednesday the results of its recent audit by Nieslen/NetRatings.

San Bruno, California-based YouTube was receiving 100 million daily views when it was bought by Mountain View, California-based Google for $1.65 billion in October 2006.

Youku’s dramatic rise in traffic—about 20-fold since it officially launched in December 2006—is the latest sign of the sizzling growth of the Chinese video market. The startup’s main rivals, Beijing-based 56 and Shanghai-based Tudou, also have risen quickly in popularity.

Depending on the metric—most often searched for, number of registered users, number of daily video posts—any of the three can be shown to be in the lead, and each is certain to trumpet the measure that serves it best.

In-Stat analyst Simon Sun predicts at least one video Internet site will be acquired this year, probably from China’s largest search engine, Baidu. He said a buyout is more likely than an initial public offering because all the sites still struggle to generate advertising revenue.

JL McGregor analyst Matt Comyns said the Chinese government’s ability and willingness to control media companies will be a hindrance for any video startup aiming to go public.

“Being subject to the whims of the government reduces their attractiveness and means they are more likely to be taken out through acquisition,” he said.

Earlier this month, the Chinese government announced new regulations for video-sharing sites, including the requirement that companies be majority state-owned in order to get licensed. The government also demanded that sites build robust, self-censoring systems to eliminate content that, among other things, damages China’s culture or traditions.

Still, Mr. Comyns said these are assets that people will want to own, with their promise of big advertising revenue to match their big traffic volume.

Analysts predict that Chinese Internet businesses will follow the path of their American counterparts, where web traffic preceded earnings.

“My guess is that you will see a steady ratcheting up of the monetization of the web over the next few years,” said Pacific Crest Securities analyst Steve Weinstein. “But once it happens, it can happen rapidly.”

Youku CEO Victor Koo unsurprisingly echoed this opinion, writing in an email that 2008 will be the year for online video advertising to emerge and grow quickly in China. He said the startup only began advertising on its web site in the second half of 2007 and revenue for the year was in the “millions” of Chinese yuan, or in the tens of thousands of U.S. dollars based on official exchange rates.

Mr. Koo said it was too early to discuss acquisitions or IPOs, and that he is focused on proving the company’s business model and showing a “path to profitability.”

Youku is backed by venture capital firms Brookside Capital, Sutter Hill Ventures, Farallon Capital and Chengwei Ventures.