YouTube will begin testing a limited video rental service this week, the company announced on its official blog yesterday.

The Google-owned company has signed a deal with the Sundance Film Festival to make five films from the 2009 and 2010 Sundance festivals available for rental on its site in a limited tryout that ends Jan. 31.

Later, YouTube said it would offer videos from “other US partners across different industries, including health and education.”

Neither the cost of renting the films, nor the revenue-sharing arrangement between the filmmakers and YouTube, was released, but the blog stated that independent filmmakers would decide on the rental cost and amount of time that their films would be made available for rental.

While on its face, the trial would appear limited, it could serve as the start of a new direction for the popular video viewing service.