Yahoo Finance Nexstar Media (NXST) to Air 100 Days to Indy on CW Network
Nexstar Media NXST recently announced that it will be releasing a new documentary series, 100 Days to Indy on CW Network in spring 2023.
Produced by Penske Entertainment and VICE Media Group, the six-part unscripted series will take the viewers on a journey of IndyCar’s teams and drivers as they prepare for the Indianapolis 500 Mile Race, which is the world’s premier motorsports competition.
Per NBC Sports Group, 2022 had been the most watched NTT IndyCar series season in six years with viewership growing 5% year over year.
This trend is likely to continue as the upcoming engaging series directed by Emmy award-winner Patrick Dimon is expected to further draw new and youthful sports fans, which will bolster viewership on CW Network.
What Lies Ahead for CW Networks?
Nexstar Media recently acquired a majority stake in CW Networks from Paramount Global and Warner Bros. Discovery, which has enabled Nexstar to establish itself as a participant in advertising video-on-demand services via the CW app.
Though CW has not been a profitable business, Nexstar Media believes that its investment and business strategies will help it improve its ratings and revenues and make it reach profitability by 2025.
The company is eyeing a dramatic shift in CW’s programming patterns, which is largely expected to move away from scripted programming and instead focus on unscripted ones. On the heels of it, the company announced the cancellation of its several original scripted series including long-running shows like Legends of Tomorrow, Dynasty and Freshman DC series, Naomi.
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It released an unscripted show Magic With The Stars on Oct 22 where two celebrities are trained under professional magicians and compete to create a show-stopping series of magic performances.
Another unscripted series lined up for 2023 is Recipe For Disaster where three professional chefs and their cooking partners compete to prepare spectacular dishes under absurdly adverse conditions.
Besides this, new episodes of Riverdale, The Flash, Superman & Lois, Nancy Drew and Gotham Knights will also join the schedule in 2023.
These new genres of series will provide diversified content and will connect CW to a wide range of audiences that could add to its top line.
CW Networks to Face Threats and Competition
CW Networks which is owned by Nexstar Media that has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) faces a major threat from the ongoing cord-cutting. Per Outlook, 5 million people have cut cable TV cords in 2022, which is 55.1% of the residents in the United States.
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Though CW has its streaming app as well, it isn’t very renowned as it faces tough competition from streaming leaders like Netflix NFLX, Walt Disney DIS and Amazon AMZN.
The lineup on Netflix looks exciting as it includes Emily in Paris season three, Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical and many more releasing in December.
The Disney+ original documentary If These Walls Could Sing hits the streaming platform on Dec 16, featuring a star-studded lineup of interviewees that includes The Beatles members Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr.
Disney has already launched its ad-tier subscriptions and Netflix is about to do the same by the end of this year. These low-cost subscription plans are expected to further increase competition for Warner Bros.
Amazon Prime Video has recently brought in HBO Max once again after a year-long suspension, which will deliver an enhanced streaming experience to customers.
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