Streaming Media
Nobody has
figured out how to stream news--yet, claimed JB Perrette,
president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery’s streaming operations. “This is a
game that is still very much to be played.”
article here
WBD hopes its
latest attempt CNN Max will crack the code. But it has its work cut out since
the platform, launching September 27, is behind the curve of its competitors.
CNN Max, which will
launch in beta, differs from the short-lived subscription service CNN+ in
that it leans much more heavily into live news, as opposed to personality
programming centered around the network's talent. The new 24/7 service will
offer live content from CNN US, CNN International plus four hours of original
programming per day and will “enable experimentation” with product features,
content and originals, the company said.
TV news
networks face the challenge of moving from the decades’ old pay-TV model
into DTC, especially when news has traditionally been delivered as a free,
ad-funded or loss leading service.
Clues to CNN’s
approach under WBD came from CEO David Zaslav earlier this month. During an
earnings call reported at Deadline he called news and
sports “differentiators” for SVOD platforms.
“They’re
compelling,” he said. “They make these platforms come alive. If you’re on an
SVOD platform and something is going on in the world and you can see it, it
makes that platform really alive.”
Combining news into
a larger entertainment-focused streaming offering is not new.
Paramount+
livestreams news from CBSN and local stations. The Roku
Channel has also added local news streams to its channel roster
including three NBC stations (San Diego, Boston and San Francisco Bay Area) as
well as LX News run by NBCUniversal Local.
Arguably the leader
in this regard is UK commercial broadcaster ITV. When it launched free ad
funded streaming hub ITVX last December it made news core to its broader drama
and light entertainment VOD offer.
ITN, the supplier
of news to ITV, pointed to the success of platforms like NBC’s Peacock saying
it had shown news to be a “valued add-on to their drama, comedy and documentary
output”.
What ITVX has done
differently, and they argue is an industry first, is to invest in original news
output, including in a dedicated team of 19 journalists.
ITV director of
news and current affairs Michael Jermey told Press Gazette: “The thinking
behind it is that in the same way as ITV puts news at the heart of its
terrestrial television schedules, in launching a really exciting new streaming
platform we want to put news at the heart of that as well–and there is nobody
who has a streamer where news plays that role and we think it’s quite an
exciting point of difference.”
The home page of
ITVX feature a ‘latest news’ bulletin, which can be updated as many times as
necessary for breaking news. By featuring news content so prominently the idea
is that viewers won’t need to jump around multiple platforms but be able to
access their familiar ITV news source in one place–on demand.
WBD has something
similar in mind for CNN Max, even if its hand is also being forced in this
direction by not being seen to cannibalise the core CNN service paid for, still
quite handsomely, by cable. The issue with going DTC for CNN has been the
network’s contract with cable operators, who pay a premium in exchange for a
certain amount of exclusivity.
So CNN Max will
simulcast core CNN shows like Amanpour, Anderson Cooper 360, The
Lead with Jake Tapper and The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer and
900 of legacy content like Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown, Stanley Tucci:
Searching for Italy and the CNN Films’ and Max Original Navalny mixed
with new shows such as CNN Newsroom with Jim Sciutto as well as live
news created specifically for the channel.
As Perette
explained in a press release: “CNN Max is differentiated by having 24/7 news at
its core from CNN, the leading global news organization, and being available on
a scaled streaming service in the U.S., which has a significantly younger and
additive audience compared to traditional TV.
“This provides even
more quality choices for Max customers who will be able to easily catch up on
what is happening in the world, particularly in moments of breaking news, all
within one seamless experience.”
Max will need
careful integration into the broader Max platform. One experiment is to alert
Max viewers to breaking news with onscreen notifications. Another idea
is to integrate “dynamic tiling” which as Perrette explained to
Variety are graphics that update to reflect what an anchor like
Blitzer or Cooper are talking about live.
WBD also needs to
switch the CNN Max business model from dependency on pay-TV distribution.
Sources told Axios that
the live feed will include the same ads sold on linear TV to start.
Eventually, it plans to integrate advanced advertising features
that would allow the network to place targeted digital ads on the service.
Nonetheless, for
all Perrette’s fighting talk, CNN’s rivals are ahead of the game. CBS launched
CBSN as far back as 2014. NBC News Now launched in 2019. ABC
News Live launched in 2020. Subscription service Fox Nation debuted 2018.
“CNN Max isn’t a
cord-cutter’s dream, but it’s a lot closer than anything else that’s been
attempted to date,” concluded Josef Adalian for Vulture. “It
could also get current Max subscribers to open the app more often, perhaps even
daily. That’s key, because the more frequently someone uses a service, the less
likely they are to cancel it.”
A premium
sports tier for Max is next in line, as soon as October, when live (not
exclusive) MLB games will be simulcast on WBD’s cable networks and on Max.
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