YouTube has launched an intriguing new ad program, one that could potentially turn around the video king’s lackluster revenue options. YouTube members can now buy keywords to place paid links on YouTube videos or channel pages.

The system works like a stripped down version of Google’s AdWords. You enter keywords, your text, and the price you’re willing to pay. You’re only charged when someone clicks on the link and, like AdWords, the actual price will be determined by auction.

The new program is logical for YouTube and its search engine parent Google, and has the potential to generate a lot of money. YouTube has a lot of search inventory and viewers search the site more than 2.5 billion times per month.

YouTube has posted a video by Matthew Liu, project manager at the company, demonstrating how the system works complete with screen shots.

To see the program in action, type in “advertising opportunities” into the search box at the top of every YouTube page (or just type in http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=advertising+opportunities&search_type=&aq=f).

In our test, an ad for Facebook appeared. Video links can also appear on the right side of the page.