Comcast unveiled its new streaming service Peacock on Thursday, which will be available without commercials for $9.99 a month or $4.99 a month for an ad-supported version, carrying live news, sports and late night programming from NBC along with such favorites as "The Office."
Along with a library of more than 10,000 hours of current and classic series, from "The Office" to executive producer Dick Wolf's "Law & Order" and Chicago-based procedural dramas, Peacock is making the NBC's late night offerings "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers" available for streaming three and a half-hours before they air on television on the east coast.
The live sports, news and timely late night shows are expected to be points of difference for Peacock as it will compete against established streaming giant Netflix, the Walt Disney Company's Disney+ and the upcoming HBO Max from WarnerMedia, which largely depend on scripted series and films.
Peacock will also carry Olympics programming _ including live event coverage and the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2020 Summer Games in Tokyo before they air on TV in prime time. Premier League soccer matches not available on television and hours of Ryder Cup golf coverage will also be offered.
From NBC News, Peacock will stream "NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt," and NBC News Now, an online channel aimed at younger viewers. It will also carry NBC/Sky Global News, a new international channel with the London-based pay TV service Sky which Comcast acquired last year.
Media giant Comcast presented Peacock to investors and members of the press gathered at Studio 8H _ home of its sketch comedy franchise "Saturday Night Live" _ at the company's headquarters at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan.
Peacock will be available first to the 24 million subscribers of Comcast's Xfinity broadband internet service starting April 15 at no extra cost. The service will roll out nationally on July 15.
Comcast is projecting that Peacock will have between 30 million and 35 million active accounts by 2024 and has said it expects the service to break even in five years.
Comcast is expected to commit $2 billion over the next two years in program development and marketing for Peacock, well under the budgets for Apple, Amazon or Netflix.
A free ad-supported version _ called Peacock Free _ will provide users with access to first year NBC series the day after airing on the network. Classic series, sports, news and feature films from the Universal Studios library will also be included. Selected original Peacock shows will be included as well.
Peacock Premium will start at $4.99, giving subscribers early access to late night shows and full seasons of original series exclusively available on Peacock. A commercial free version will be widely available for $9.99 a month and at a discounted $4.99 a month for Xfinity subscribers.
The $9.99 per month pricing on the premium ad-free service comes in above the $6.99 for Disney+, which analysts have praised for being a consumer bargain. It's under the monthly fees for HBOMax ($14.99). Netflix offers a range of pricing from $8.99 to $15.99 a month.
Comcast's decision to go with ad-supported versions is a bet that there will be significant demand for online video advertising as the size of the audience for traditional TV continues to erode. Annual ad revenue for TV has stayed in the range of $70 billion annually in recent years even though viewing has declined steadily as streaming has become the preferred way to watch sitcoms and dramas.
Cable and satellite cord-cutting has also contributed to a decline in ratings for NBCUniversal-owned cable outlets, including USA, Syfy and E!, leading to lower advertising sales. Such channels are received in fewer homes than they were just five years ago, decreasing the revenue that comes from affiliate fees.
Nonetheless, Comcast's most profitable business is selling broadband internet service to more than 25 million consumers and those connections have become more valuable. To underscore that point, Comcast has offered Netflix as part of its cable bundle since 2018.
In addition, Comcast service historically has been restricted. Its customer base has been confined to a hodge-podge of communities, including San Francisco, Sacramento, Denver, Chicago and Philadelphia, where the company has franchise agreements to provide cable TV.
Residents in Los Angeles, New York and Dallas don't have access to Comcast service. However, the move to streaming will allow customers in Los Angeles, New York and beyond to sign up for Comcast's Peacock service � allowing the company to form relationships with millions of new customers and sell advertising.
Comcast's investor day also gave Wall Street a glimpse of NBCUniversal's newly minted chief executive, Jeff Shell. In December, Steve Burke announced that he would step down next summer after running the company for nearly a decade. Burke now is chairman of NBCUniversal until August, when he will officially retire at the age of 62.
Shell, who became the CEO earlier this month, has been a Comcast executive for 15 years. The Los Angeles native became chairman of the Universal film studio in 2013. A former Fox TV executive, he ran Comcast's small cable channels before Comcast acquired NBCUniversal in 2011.
The move is Comcast's second major business initiative in two years. In 2018, Comcast spent nearly $40 billion to buy Sky, which provides television service to more than 20 million homes in five European countries, including Britain and Germany. Several Sky executives have been involved in the strategy for Peacock.
.png?w=600)
