Picking and choosing which subscription streaming services to pay for is already a daunting task for many consumers and now there’s one more to consider: The Weather Channel Plus.
The 24/7 weather channel—which is owned by Byron Allen's Allen Media Group—is planning to launch the service (priced at $4.99/month) in the fourth quarter of 2021. Besides leaning on Weather Channel content, the service more than 50 news and entertainment streaming channels. It’s possible that will include some of Allen Media’s owned channels like PETS.TV, COMEDY.TV, RECIPE.TV, CARS.TV, ES.TV, MYDESTINATION.TV, JUSTICE CENTRAL.TV, THEGRIO.TV, THIS TV, LOCAL NOW TV and PATTRN.
"The Weather Channel has been voted the most-trusted news brand in America for eleven consecutive years, and the fifth most-trusted brand in America overall, which makes it the perfect brand for a direct-to-consumer streaming platform," said Byron Allen, founder, chairman and CEO of Allen Media Group, in a statement. "We've aggregated some of the best news and entertainment content while keeping it affordable and accessible at the same time. We are highly confident that consumers will enjoy The Weather Channel Plus streaming service for decades to come."
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Allen has high hopes for The Weather Channel Plus; his company is projecting the service will accumulate 30 million subscribers within its first five years.
At the same time, Allen Media has been consistently growing the channel lineup for its free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) service, Local Now. The service now has more than 8,000 titles and 345 free streaming channels, including a Local Now channel in local markets across the country.
“We’re proud to continue the mission of our free-streaming service Local Now of providing a channel for every interest, in every market,” says Byron Allen, Founder/Chairman/CEO of Local Now parent company Allen Media Group. “We’re thrilled to announce that QVC, HSN, Demand Africa and Quincy Jones’ Qwest TV are joining Local Now and further expanding our free content offerings in the areas of shopping, travel, lifestyle, music and entertainment.”