How can traditional television reach millennials? NBCUniversal is reportedly banking on laughs, revealing through unnamed sources that it will launch a subscription video on demand (SVOD) service later this year that will focus on comedy, including The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and Saturday Night Live.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA)-owned broadcaster is considering a price point in the range of $2.50 to $3.50 per month and that the service is expected to launch later this year.
It's also not the only SVOD service that NBCU is considering: WSJ said that the company is considering genre-specific SVOD offerings, such as horror, family, or faith.
Launching different, a la carte offerings by genre would certainly differentiate NBCU from Sling TV, which has a more comprehensive over-the-top service featuring channels from several different cable networks. It's also a different approach than that taken by CBS in launching its $5.99 monthly All Access service, which features live and on-demand streaming.
The OTT comedy service may also be one way for NBCU to better monetize programs like Tonight Show and SNL, which routinely see their sketches go viral online (SNL's "ISIS" parody of a car commercial being the latest video to attract massive social media attention).
Evan Shapiro, EVP of digital enterprises for NBCU, will lead the SVOD initiative.
For more:
- WSJ has this story
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