OTT

Aiming to be “The Netflix of Live, Local and Free,” VUit is doubling down on the power and potential appeal of hyperlocal live content both regionally and nationally. VUit’s initial launch partners include more than 200 television stations. Syncbak also announced that Gray Television has made a “significant additional investment” in the company.

Subscription streaming video’s alter-ego, advertising-supported VOD, continues to gain traction among consumers — and advertisers. New data from eMarketer suggests AVOD revenue will grow more than 25% this year compared to 2019.

A recent survey from Hub Research revealed that over 50% of Americans make streaming their first stop when deciding what to watch, choosing the streaming stick over the set-top box. This has far-reaching implications for the TV industry as it signals a real sea change in the way people view TV and what the industry might look like in the years to come.

Wells Fargo Securities media analyst Steven Cahall raised his outlook on ViacomCBS  Thursday from “Underweight” to “Equal Weight” and increased his 12-month price target on the stock to $30 per share from $19 per share, citing the programmers  aggressive moves in the streaming video space.

Unilever, Target and Coors are among the brands using the streaming service’s interactive feature on Comcast’s Voice Remote-equipped X1 and Xfinity Flex platforms.

Shares of Roku Inc. surged over 11% on Wednesday after Citi initiated coverage of the streaming video company with a “buy” rating, while Netflix also rallied more than 11%. Roku and Netflix are among several technology-related companies that have benefited as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, with people around the world spending more time at home.

NBCUniversal has added a free sports channel to its new Peacock streamer. Called NBC Sports on Peacock, the channel will offer sports talk shows and live sports event coverage. Shows will be available on demand in addition to streaming live.

The company’s CFO proclaims the top OTT platform still plays its ‘traditional’ Switzerland role in the streaming wars. But analysts say it now has too many advertising and subscription agendas.

Netflix is aggressively searching for its own large-scale talent competition and a big-ticket game show as it moves into its next phase of non-scripted originals. The streamer is looking to do more four-quadrant family entertainment shows to build on its recent reality shows such as Too Hot To Handle and Love Is Blind.

Beneath the headlines and social media commotion about high-profile subscription video on demand (SVOD) titles like Tiger King, Upload and Ozark, a new form of digital streaming is gaining traction: those that are ad-supported.

Panelists from NBC, CBS, Graham and Fox will tackle the challenges of launching new content and adapting streaming programming in a year upended by COVID-19 and explosive protests at TVNewsCheck’s virtual event on Sept. 22. Register here.

Cable operators are telling the FCC that retrans regulations should apply to carriage negotiations that include ancillary “broadcast internet” services. That came in comments by NCTA-The Internet & Television Association on the FCC’s inquiry into what, if any, rules need to be changed to accommodate broadcaster’s potential new multichannel services using the ATSC 3.0 transmission standard.

Is it just a silly media-tech myth, or do recent OTT deals portend a major retrograde trend?

Frank Comerford, NBCU Owned Television Stations’ CRO and president of commercial operations, says its Post-In Flight deals are starting to take off and could eliminate much of the post-buy work for both the station group and ad agencies. He says Spot ON, NBCU’s OTT/CTV product, is also bolstering business development and making it easier to communicate with advertisers.

Americans are spending an average of $1 billion a month more on video streaming since January, according to cloud video technology company Grabyo. Amid the pandemic, video streaming services have reached 72% penetration into American homes, up 13% since January.

The broadcast networks’ Emmy woes are not new; you can call them part of an “anyone but Netflix and HBO is suffering” story. All told — including PBS but not The CW, which I’m not sure Emmy voters know exists — broadcasters landed 127 noms this year, down from 151 in 2019. Cable received 246, down from 299. Compare that with 269 noms fro online platforms, up from 199, making it the first time that streamers lead the Emmy race.

An IPO using a special purpose acquisition company is reportedly one of the options being considered by the sports streaming service.

The streamer is testing out a new “Shuffle Play” button that allows viewers to watch TV and movie titles randomly selected by the streaming service. The button appears on the profiles page only on TV devices, including Roku.

ViacomCBS’s Pluto TV said it has added a dozen new channels and reconfigured its streaming lineup to make it easier for viewers to find what they want to watch. The new channels included Three’s Company, Johnny Carson TV, Dabl, The Rifleman, Demand Africa, Western TV, Classic TV Comedy, Classic TV Drama, Pluto TV Love Stories, Pluto TV Suspense and Pluto TV Fantastic.

Verizon and Disney are expanding their distribution and marketing partnership to add the full Disney+/Hulu/ESPN+ bundle at no charge for 12 months for subscribers to two wireless plans. Beginning Thursday, customers who choose the “Play More Unlimited” or “Get More Unlimited” packages will get the bundle for free as part of their monthly cost of $45 or $55 before taxes and fees. Disney charges $13 a month for its three-service bundle. If bought separately, they would be $19.

Apple Inc. plans to bundle access to CBS All Access and Showtime content at a discounted price for subscribers to its TV+ video service, according to people familiar with the plans. This is Apple’s first discounted bundle offering for video content with the TV+ service. Currently, users must subscribe to different content providers in the TV app on an à la carte basis.