Warner Bros. Discovery Launches Free CNN Streaming Channel in Europe; Will Channel Join WBD’s Domestic FAST Service?
Not content with dominating headlines thanks to the launch of its new streaming platform Max, Warner Bros. Discovery is unleashing even more new streaming options onto the world. This time the focus is on Europe, where WBD has announced it is releasing a new free ad-supported TV (FAST) channel with internationally-focused CNN content.
The channel will be called CNN Fast and will offer short-form videos dedicated to news events, business and sports stores, entertainment, and environmental news. The channel will be available on Rakuten TV in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxemburg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom beginning on Tuesday, May 23. It will launch on [LG Channels] on Wednesday, May 24, and on Samsung TV Plus in June.
“CNN Fast offers a new and different user experience to the main CNN broadcast channel,” CNN International’s head of distribution strategy Humphrey Black said. “By working with established CTV platform partners, where we have already seen considerable success for CNN content, we’re now able to connect with more viewers and households via the devices and formats that they already enjoy. This is an exciting approach that gives audiences a new way to experience CNN’s renowned journalism and storytelling.”
By using shorter-form videos, WBD is hoping to attract younger viewers to CNN Fast. With stories delivered in three-to-six-minute clips, the new succinct and easily digestible format will aim to keep viewers updated and engaged. Users who have grown accustomed to this viewing style on apps like TikTok and Instagram will ideally respond in big numbers to the new CNN Fast offering.
“This is a great opportunity to showcase highlights of some of the best CNN content to a broader audience, offering different genres of stories presented in a fast-paced, short-form style that will appeal to a younger and wider demographic,” CNN International programming SVP Meara Erdozain said.
This is one of CNN’s first forays back into the digital space after the epic disaster that was CNN+. Launched in March of 2022, CNN+ attempted to provide viewers with on-demand news content, and some original shows as well. But when the merger of WarnerMedia and Discovery was completed a few weeks later, CNN+ was one of the first things new WBD CEO David Zaslav put on the chopping block.
There’s a good chance customers in the United States will get access to CNN Fast sooner or later. WBD has confirmed to The Streamable it plans to launch its own free streaming platform with FAST channels at some point in the U.S., and when it does CNN Fast would make for a highly logical addition. Alternatively, the company could license the domestic streaming rights to CNN Fast to another platform like The Roku Channel, as it did with several other FAST channels earlier this year.
Max
Max is a subscription video streaming service that gives access to the full HBO library, along with exclusive Max Originals. There are hubs for content from TLC, HGTV, Food Network, Discovery, TCM, Cartoon Network, Travel Channel, ID, and more. Watch hit series like “The Last of Us,” “House of the Dragon,” “Succession,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and more. Thanks to the B/R Sports add-on, users can watch NBA, MLB, NHL, March Madness, and NASCAR events.