NewFronts 2013: Yahoo!
Programming
Yahoo’s video strategy has centered on two “verticals”: comedy and women’s lifestyle programming. This year’s NewFront expanded that portfolio with:
Tiny Commando: A new comedy series created by Ed Helms (The Office, The Hangover). Starring Helms, Zachary Levi, Gillian Jacobs, and a bunch of other comedy veterans, this show from Principato-Young Entertainment follows a four-inch tall private investigator as he fights crime against his fellow miniature arch-nemesis. Fall 2013.
We Need Help: Cheryl Hines (Curb Your Enthusiasm) and Rachael Harris (The Hangover) star as versions of themselves putting their assistant through hell. From Michael Eisner’s independent production studio Vuguru, in association with Principato-Young Entertainment, Hines and Harris also serve as the series’ creators and producers. Fall 2013.
Losing Your Virginity with John Stamos: Fall 2013. Exactly what it sounds like, sort of. Stamos (Full House, ER) interviews celebrities about their first time. The show is co-produced by Warrior Poets and executive produced by Morgan Spurlock and John Stamos. Fall 2013.
Fashion Recipe: Hosted by celebrity stylist Brett Alan Nelson, who “shows you how to get the most from one particular article of clothing.” The series will premiere later this year on Yahoo.
Cinema & Spice: Hosts Julianna Stricland and Natasha Feldman discuss films as they teach viewers new cooking skills and home decorating ideas. Debuting later this year.
Grill Girls (working title): A grilling show starring chef Megan Mitchell, who shares her grilling secrets for steaks, pizza, and even peaches.
WWE Raw Pre-Show: A 30-minute show that will air exclusively on Yahoo before World Wrestling Entertainment’s (WWE) flagship program, Monday Night Raw. Yahoo and WWE will also program live pre-shows of every WWE pay-per-view event.
Yahoo/ABC News Partnership is expanding to include online-only extensions of ABC’s TV programs like Nightline, World News with Diane Sawyer, and Good Morning America. In World News Beyond the Headlines, Diane Sawyer and a team of correspondents will provide viewers with additional news coverage of the top stories of the day. Nightline: Online will provide additional, exclusive content on topics ranging from entertainment to breaking news and international exposes. GMA Live will continue the daily Good Morning America programming for another 15 minutes, with segments like GMA Rewind, the Play of the Day, EXTRA, and Exclusive Deals.
Talking Numbers: The third series from Yahoo Finance and CNBC will debut in May. The show will highlight the best investment opportunities by analyzing stocks from “both a technical and fundamental point of view.” Yahoo Finance and CNBC’s other web programs include Off the Cuff and Big Data Download.
Marketing, Promotions, and Distribution
Regarding its comedy slate, Erin McPherson, VP & Head of Video Programming and Originals at Yahoo said: “With Burning Love, we cracked the code on scripted, serialized programming. More than 11 million people watched it on Yahoo, and another 7 million or so are watching it on E!. Seasons two and three are tracking just as well.” With that in mind, the company is looking to implement a similar strategy in developing, green-lighting, and distributing original comedy content across Yahoo platforms.
Yahoo says it will make all episodes from every show within its fall comedy lineup, which includes the previously announced The Fuzz (a puppet crime comedy from Vuguru) and Ghost Ghirls (from Shine America and Electric Dynamite), available from the very beginning.
Last week, Yahoo announced a deal with NBC Entertainment and Broadway Video to offer clips from every season of Saturday Night Live exclusively, at least for one year. Yahoo will also non-exclusively offer full episodes from next season of SNL.
Yahoo announced a partnership with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) to offer the latest wrestling clips on a dedicated hub on its website. The hub will also feature the aforementioned pre-shows, as well as an extensive video archive of WWE matches, shows, highlights, and other events.
Yahoo has inked a deal with fellow NewFront presenter Conde Nast Entertainment (CNE) to distribute CNE’s video programming. This includes dedicated video channels around CNE publishing brands like GQ and Glamour (with more to be unveiled at CNE’s NewFront later this week).
Yahoo Stream Ads: Yahoo’s foray into native advertising by allowing advertisers to embed ads into the personalized content stream on Yahoo’s homepage.
Billboard: A rich media ad at the top of the Yahoo home page, giving advertisers the opportunity to offer video and interactive elements.
Yahoo says it is offering a “new video-buying method” that combines its own topic-based video channels with its distribution partners’ video content. “We are now offering 18 categories for you to buy across,” said Erin McPherson, VP & Head of Video Programming and Originals at Yahoo.
