CNN to Launch New OTT Service 'CNN Plus' Next Year

Photo by WSJ

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The American cable news channel CNN is entering the over-the-top (OTT) video service market, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 1st (local time).

According to sources familiar with the matter, CNN plans to hire hundreds of new employees including producers, commentators, and developers for a new OTT service called 'CNN Plus.'

CNN Plus will offer separate content different from the news broadcast on the cable channel, and the subscription fee has not yet been decided.

CNN Plus is scheduled to officially launch next year and will provide new news shows featuring CNN's famous anchors such as Anderson Cooper and Don Lemon.

To this end, sources said that over the past year, CNN signed new contracts with many of its anchors agreeing to appear on CNN Plus as well. Anchors participating in CNN Plus under the new contracts will receive higher salaries than before.

The WSJ reported that the CNN Plus launch plan comes amid a decline in popularity of traditional media such as TV, with competing broadcasters rushing into the OTT market and strengthening related services.

The parent company WarnerMedia announced last month that it will separate from AT&T, the largest telecommunications media group in the U.S., and establish a merged corporation with the cable channel Discovery.

Jeff Zucker, CEO of CNN, reportedly said at a meeting with employees last week that the merger between the parent company and Discovery will not affect the CNN Plus plan and that the service will start within next year.

Previously, in 2018, Fox News launched 'Fox Nation,' an OTT service related to news and opinion, and NBCUniversal launched 'Peacock' last year, offering news programs and more.

Following last year's presidential election, cable news ratings have generally declined, with CNN experiencing relatively more sluggish performance. According to Nielsen, a ratings research company, CNN, once the number one news channel, fell to third place in the second quarter.

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