NBC News to launch news programs for millennials on Quibi
NBC News will create morning and evening news shows aimed at millennials on Quibi, a new video streaming app backed by studio mogul Jeffrey Katzenberg and Silicon Valley tech veteran Meg Whitman.
The news shows will be six minutes long and air seven days a week. The production team will work out of 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York and have access to NBC News resources such as NBC News Now for breaking-news coverage.
“NBC News’ worldwide reach brings in millions of viewers across its many platforms, and we are excited to work with them to deliver an innovative way for millennials to get news in a format that fits into their lives,” Katzenberg, Quibi’s founder and board chairman, said in a news release Tuesday.
The NBC News shows will target millennials, which research firm EMarketer describes as people born between 1981 and 1996. EMarketer estimates that 94% of millennials are smartphone users, a key demographic for Quibi, which is launching an app that will distribute stories in short chapters next April.
In addition to NBC News, Quibi has signed up well-known filmmakers including Antoine Fuqua to create content for its platform.
Traditional networks have increasingly sought new ways to reach audiences as the amount of time spent on mobile devices, including smartphones, outpaces time spent watching TV.
In the United States, adults will spend an average of three hours and 43 minutes each day on their smartphones, feature phones and tablets this year, eight more minutes than they’ll spend watching TV, according to EMarketer. The amount of time spent on mobile devices is even greater among younger users, including millennials.
“Millennials are hungry for smart and trustworthy news as prior generations,” said Noah Oppenheim, president of NBC News, in a news release. “With Quibi we’ll be able to meet that demand in a new style and format that works for them.”
Quibi will launch in April amid numerous streaming services competing for consumer dollars and attention.
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