Summary:
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Netflix is partnering with major publishers to offer short-form video content to subscribers in select countries.
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The clips range from 2-3 minutes to over 20, featuring content from archives and ongoing series from various publishers.
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This move allows Netflix to experiment with web-native formats and keep viewers engaged in the face of growing competition.
Netflix is adding short-form video from a lineup of major publishers, another sign the streamer is moving past the binge model it helped create.
Starting August 3, subscribers in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand will get video content from partners including BuzzFeed Studios, Condé Nast, Hearst Magazines, People Inc., Tastemade, and several Penske Media brands such as Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, Eater, Rolling Stone, and Indiewire.
The clips vary in length. Some run just two to three minutes, while others stretch past 20. The lineup pulls from both archives and ongoing series, including Vanity Fair’s Lie Detector, Billboard’s 24 Hrs With, Variety’s How Well Do They Know?, and Tastemade’s Struggle Meals. Netflix says more publishers will join over time.
The deal is a low-cost way for Netflix to test whether its audience wants web-native formats like news, lifestyle segments, and how-tos. It also lands as the company faces pressure to keep viewers engaged. A Bloomberg report this week found Netflix struggling to retain fans between the first and second seasons of top shows, part of a broader shift that now pits it against YouTube and TikTok as much as traditional TV.
Netflix already offers a TikTok-style “Clips” feature that funnels viewers toward full-length titles.
These publisher deals go the other way, treating short-form video as a destination in its own right. John Derderian, the VP overseeing the project, said the partnerships give members more ways to stay connected to the stories and personalities they already follow.
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