Turner said it plans to significantly expand its existing agreement with Snapchat to include additional sports content as well as original content from Turner brands including TBS, Adult Swim, truTV, Great Big Story and Super Deluxe.
“This deal marks the latest strategic move for Turner to innovate within the digital arena and provide complementary viewing experiences for a younger, mobile-centric audience,” said David Levy, president of Turner, in a release. “Snapchat is a powerful outlet to directly connect with the millennial generation and perfectly aligns with our portfolio-wide strategy to engage with audiences at every touch point.”
Specifically, Turner said its Bleacher Report will launch a daily Snapchat Discover Channel for sports, and that the company will also expand its Snapchat Live Stories with content from the NCAA for basketball and PGA for golf.
Importantly, the companies said the agreement will cover new Snapchat ads: “Turner and Snapchat will collaborate on advertising sales, developing exclusive and immersive ad experiences that provide brands the space to connect with millennials in a dynamic mobile environment within original shows and Live Stories. The two companies will also provide sponsors with creative advertising opportunities on the Discover Channels, offering brands a full-screen, creative canvas for mobile storytelling,” Turner said in a release.
Earlier this year, Turner announced a two-year agreement with Snapchat to create Live Stories for sporting events like March Madness basketball, college baseball and professional golf. As the Wall Street Journal noted at the time, that agreement coincided with other Snapchat deals with the likes of the National Football League, Major League Baseball and Viacom.
Indeed, NBC even inked an agreement with Snapchat in August for Live Stories for the Summer Olympics.
The allure of Snapchat to media companies like Turner and Viacom is clear. According to a June report from Bloomberg, Snapchat counts 150 million users each day, making the messaging app more popular than Twitter by daily active users.
As for Turner, the company argued that its deal with Snapchat will help it more effectively target younger users. Turner noted that its brands reach “nearly 80% of adults 18+, including 73% of millennials each month.” The company also said that it counts a total of 694 million followers across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Vine. Turner’s inclusion of Vine in its social media efforts is noteworthy considering Twitter announced in October it would shut Vine down.