After four decades of being a very well-known weekend show on U.S. television, "Saturday Night Live" (SNL) will now have a Chinese version.

This will be made possible through the partnership of Sohu.com Incorporated, an operator of an online search engine and video streaming sites, with Broadway Video Entertainment, which was founded about 35 years ago by SNL creator Lorne Michaels.

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The new version will hire comedians from across China for a program that will showcase live music and sketch comedy.

Since 2013, Sohu has been bringing SNL'S New York version to Chinese viewers, via streaming.

SNL has catapulted generations of comedians to global fame.

They include Eddie Murphy, John Belushi, Tina Fey, Adam Sandler and Will Ferrel.

NBC showed SNL's 40^th anniversary episode last month.

Wang Sixin, a professor at the Communication University of China based in Beijing, says, "China's Communist Party has been looking for new ways to engage with the audience, because past forms of preaching are no longer suitable for today."

But Wang also warns, "what Sohu needs to be careful about, though, is finding the right balance when doing satire about social and political issues."

Broadview Video is behind TV shows like "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and "Portlandia."

The firm has also produced films such as "Mean Girls."

Sohu says, the Chinese SNL version is being tailored specifically for Chinese audiences, but producers will also inject an international appeal" into the program.

It adds, "SNL, which combines the best elements of live music and sketch comedy, will be a refreshing new option for Chinese viewers."

Consultants from SNL NewYork will help in the production of the Chinese version of the show.

SNL in China is scheduled to premiere at the end of this year or early next year.

As foreign companies move to tap China's market of 1.3 billion people, its internet operators are putting their investment on content to attract more users.

China's largest e-commerce operator, Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., owns a part in streaming website, Youku Tudou Incorporated.

Meanwhile, Baidu Incorporated, the maker of China's most widely used search engine, controls the 'Iqiyi' video site.

The content from Time Warner Incorporated's Home Box Office (HBO) is being aired by Tencent Holdings Ltd.

Tencent also airs U.S. programs like "Game of Thrones," "Band of Brothers" and "True Detective."

Sohu has lately been moving to provide more original content to China's 600 million internet users.

It has just signed a similar deal with BBC last month.

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