First Netflix and Amazon. Now Yahoo to Get Into TV Programming Game
4/5/2014 | The Wall Street Journal
By Mike Shields
Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer
Yahoo is raising its ambitions in online video, with plans to acquire the kind of programming that typically winds up on high-end cable TV networks or streaming services like Netflix, people briefed on the company’s plans say.
The company is close to ordering four Web series, the people briefed on Yahoo’s plans say. And unlike in years past, Yahoo isn’t looking for short-form Web originals, but rather 10-episode, half hour comedies with per-episode budgets ranging from $700,000 to a few million dollars, the people say. The projects being considered would be helmed by writers or directors with experience in television.
“They want to blow it out big time,” one of the people briefed on the plans said.
Yahoo Chief Executive Marissa Mayer is hoping to show off TV-caliber content at this year’s “NewFront” – its answer to a TV “upfront” ad sales presentation for marketers. But it’s not clear if she’ll be able to close enough programming deals before the event, which will be held on April 28 in New York.
Yahoo declined to comment.
Ms. Mayer is keen to create some buzz for Yahoo and convince advertisers that it is offering higher quality video programming than its competitors, particularly Google Inc’s YouTube. The people briefed on Yahoo’s plans say Ms. Mayer and her chief marketing officer, Kathy Savitt, have reviewed more than 100 projects over the past few months, looking for series that are ready to launch and don’t require a lot of development.
The company hasn’t yet finalized any programming deals. One issue for the company is whether it could make enough money from advertising to support the shows. If Yahoo is able to acquire ownership of the content, it could supplement its revenue by licensing the shows in international markets and cutting syndication deals. Traditional TV studios typically bank on those sources of revenue to make a profit.
A breakout Web series would surely help Yahoo’s perception among advertisers. And it could even convince some marketers to shift a portion of their ad budgets that would typically go to TV. But, by aiming higher than typical Web original series, Yahoo is also entered a crowded market for top level TV series. Beside the vast array of cable outlets competing for the type of shows Ms. Mayer is looking to acquire, a slew of deep pocketed newer entrants are snapping up expensive TV series, including Netflix, Amazon, and most recently Sony.
“They’re looking at the same type of shows that Netflix and Amazon are eyeing,” said one person familiar with the situation.
The programming push is part of a broader strategy by Ms Mayer to focus on video. The Wall Street Journal reported at the end of March that the company was in preliminary talks to acquire online video service News Distribution Network Inc. Yahoo also struck partnerships with TV news journalist Katie Couric and former New York Times tech columnist David Pogue.
http://blogs.wsj.com/cmo/2014/04/05/yahoos-plans-for-tv-splash/