Twitter will bring original shows from NBCUniversal, Disney and Viacom among others to its platform, including a version of “SportsCenter” from Disney-owned ESPN.
The company announced more than 30 new partnerships at its NewFront presentation in New York on Monday night, an annual presentation of video content for advertisers.
“We’re not guessing: We’re listening,” Twitter’s head of content Kay Madati said at the event. “People on our service tell us directly what they want to see through conversations on Twitter.”
Daily video views have doubled over the past year, according to Twitter, and the company hopes adding more premium programming will attract new advertisers and audiences. Video makes up half of Twitter’s advertising revenue, the company said during its earnings report on April 25. It said its NewFront 82 percent of users interact with brands on its platform.
Advertisers spent $13 billion on digital video last year according to eMarketer, but by partnering with traditional media companies Twitter may be able to dip into the $71 billion television advertising budget. Its increasing efforts to create shows with online influencers may also chip away at YouTube’s dominance.
New video coming to Twitter includes:
- Live videos, clips and original shows from NBCUniversal properties NBC, NBC News, MSNBC, CNBC, Telemundo, TODAY, and E! News. More details will be announced at a later date.
- Disney programming from ESPN, ABC, Disney Channel, Freeform, Disney Digital Network, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, Radio Disney and Marvel. Announced shows include a bespoke version of “SportsCenter Live” for breaking sports events, as well as a daily version of podcast “Fantasy Focus Live.” More series will be announced in the future.
- Live event coverage for MTV and BET award shows, as well an pop culture daily news show from Comedy Central and other news shows from BET and MTV.
- Hearst’s Delish will have a show about different U.S. food holidays, while “IRL” will be a live news show from Seventeen.
- Will Packer, who produced “Girls Trip,” “Ride Along” and “Straight Out of Compton,” will debut a 30-minute weekly show from Will Packer Media called “Power Star Live.” The series will address social issues and topics brought up by the #BlackTwitter movement.
- Fox Sports will create a highlights program for the 2018 World Cup, and there will also be a live show with Turner around the NBA Finals. Twitter will also host series from Formula 1 and MLB. In addition to previously announced content from MLS, the 2018 MLS Homegrown Game, featuring young, up-and-coming soccer players will be streamed on its platform.
The company also announced it would launch Creator Originals, Powered by Niche, a division dedicated to helping online influencers create scripted series for Twitter. Niche is Twitter’s creator network. It will also debut Live Brand Studio, a program to help marketers create live content on Twitter.
Disclaimer: NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.
