NBC is launching a new service that, like the BBC's Listen Again, will enable consumers to watch shows free for a week after they have been broadcast. In a press release, it says:
NBC.com today announced the launch of its new service, "NBC Direct," which will allow users to download and view NBC's popular primetime and late-night entertainment programming on their desktops for up to one week after broadcast. This new feature provides yet another platform on which fans will be able to enjoy NBC Entertainment content.
The downloads will be ad-supported and expire after a week. Later, users will be able to pre-order their downloads. And as usual, the system will only work on Windows PCs to start with -- presumably using Microsoft's openly-licensed DRM.
The "yet another platform" bit refers to the fact that the same shows are available for money from Amazon Unbox, and will be available from Hulu, as I reported here before in NBU hopes Hulu and Amazon will mean it doesn't need iTunes.
Since many fans of TV series such as Heroes, The Office, and 30 Rock will go to the NBC site for information, it makes perfect sense to offer them catch-up downloads. Since they'd have had to suffer the ads if they'd watched the programmes live, it also makes sense to provide ad-supported downloads. Whether it will add up to a significant number of downloads is another matter, but by trying different approaches, NBC will be able to find out.
