NEWFRONT UPDATES
Mashable kept it short and sweet at its NewFront presentation, held yesterday in midtown Manhattan. Mashable has pushed heavily into video over the last couple of years, and the company boasted that, for the first time ever, its video content is now being visited more often than its print content. (The slew of print journalists that Mashable laid off in April 2016 might have a thing or two to say about those developments.) Mashable’s biggest new announcement was the launch of Mashable Reels, a new vertical video product and content series for the mobile web. (It’s not an app, CEO Pete Cashmore was sure to clarify.) Mashable Reels, similar in appearance to Snapchat and Instagram Stories, includes a mix of video, photos, text, and other media. The first three Reels are focused on HBO’s Game of Thrones, the planet Mars, and Wonder Woman. McDonald’s and Sprint are on-board as advertisers.
One consistent theme of the presentation was that Mashable views itself as a mobile-first company – and that TV isn’t its focus. A year or two ago, that direction would have seemed like a no-brainer. But in 2017, connected-TV devices have pervaded the market. In a post-presentation conversation with Cynopsis Digital, CEO Pete Cashmore clarified that Mashable is indeed active across numerous platforms other than mobile, and has connected TV apps for platforms including Roku and Apple TV. But, Cashmore affirmed, mobile comes first – and Mashable has no intention of competing on a mass level with TV production giants. Instead, he said, the company is interested in using data to target audience segments on a more precise level. “The first screen we think about is the mobile screen,” he said. “We will think about set-top boxes, we will think about linear, but it’s not where we’re going to make most of our bets. We’re not going to be a TV production company in five years.”
PLATFORMS, APPS + DEVICES
TCL announced two new 4K ultra HD smart TV lines, both powered by Roku’s OS. The new P series and C series both come equipped with Dolby Vision HDR (high dynamic range). The C series also features what TCL calls a more contemporary design. C series TVs are priced between $700 and $2,000. The full range of P series prices haven’t been revealed just yet. TCL first started selling Roku-powered smart TVs in 2014, but with frugal consumers in mind. With its new HDR models, it seems the electronics-maker is moving into more upscale markets.
Sports-centric OTT TV service fuboTV is adding a new way to view programming from its partners. Subscribers can now directly access content from a number of channels’ TV Everywhere apps and websites. Among other content, those channels include networks owned by Fox and NBC. Fubo TV’s content was already available on the fubo.tv website, and via Fubo’s OTT and mobile apps.
PROGRAMMING + CONTENT ACQUISITIONS
Amazon ’s Twitch really, really wants to dispel the idea that it’s just a game-streaming platform. The live-streamer will feature a free, 18-day marathon of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood’ episodes. All episodes of the classic PBS kids’ series – 886 in total – will be broadcast. The stream kicks off on May 15 at 3pm ET, running all the way through June 3.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Facebook wants to make it harder for low-quality publishers to monetize their sites. The social media giant says it will use artificial intelligence to find websites that have an excessive number of ads, or feature ad experiences that are malicious or disruptive. For instance, a page with too many ads and not enough original images or text would set off alarm bells. Once Facebook determines that a site is indeed spam, it’ll automatically reduce the poster’s news feed ranking, making it less likely for people to see the content. Facebook says it’ll roll the changes out over the next few months.
Digital media and production company AwesomenessTV is behind which Hulu original series? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, and state.)
Our Last Trivia Question: A legendary American actress appeared on Amazon/Channel 4’s Catastrophe as Mia, the male lead’s mother. She passed away shortly after season three wrapped production. Who was the actress? Answer: Carrie Fisher. Kudos to Andy Pittman-TAMU/TX, Lous Lewow-Lewow Media Group/GA, Joseph Consentino-Big Bear Films LLC, Karen Van Vleet-Horizon Media/NY, Barbara Potasky-NBCUniversal/NY, Mathew Tombers-Intermat, Inc./NY, Matt Meachem-Gracenote/NY, Adam S. Hacker-Tashmoo Productions/GA, Peter Steckelman-Tennis Channel/CA, Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment/CA, Gabrielle Pedro Fredrick-National Geographic/Washington, D.C., Matthew Willence-ITN Networks/NY, April L McKenzie-Viacom/NY, David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Federal Credit Union/CA, Tom Moore-Kalt Productions/CA, Kevin O’Donovan-AMC Networks/NY, Lorrie Shilling/CA, Dan Haberer-Creo Entertainment/CA, and Luke Watson-Roker Labs/NY
