Nexstar Media Group’s CW Network has launched its latest free, ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels through Amazon’s FAST platform, Freevee.
The channels — CW Gold and CW Forever — were quietly added to Freevee last week, The Desk can confirm. It marks the latest effort by the CW Network to build out its FAST business since broadcaster Nexstar acquired a majority stake in the network two years ago.
Distribution terms of the deal between the CW Network and Amazon were not available. The two channels were not initially offered through the CW Network’s own FAST platform — which recently became available through the CW app for Apple TV and iPhones — but the channels appeared on the web version of the CW FAST platform a few hours after this story was first published.
In April, The Desk exclusively reported that the CW Network had debuted its first FAST channel through its own app, which offers re-runs of the talent competition show “Penn & Teller: Fool Us.”
Less clear is what programming CW Gold and CW Forever will carry. When The Desk checked on the channels earlier this week, CW Gold seemed to be offering police procedurals, including re-runs of the CBS show “Numbers.” CW Forever appears to be offering imports of Canadian-produced series, including “The L.A. Complex” and “Degrassi: The Next Generation.”
Streaming is still a small part of Nexstar’s overall business, which generates most of its revenue from affiliate fees charged for the distribution of its 160-plus local broadcast stations and cable network NewsNation.
“The main reason we’re not in streaming is because we just don’t think it’s a good business,” Nexstar CEO Perry Sook said at an investor conference in May, without addressing the CW Network’s FAST platform or free streaming apps.
He continued: “It’s not a business that we want to get into to lose money — and, so, we think there are a number of ways that we can reach the consumer.”
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Editor’s note: This story was updated to note that the two CW FAST channels were added to the online version of the platform hours after a preliminary version of this article was first published. The earlier version said the CW FAST channels were only distributed through Freevee.
