NBC streaming service Peacock to launch in April with The Office, reboots, movies

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No official price yet, but it'll have reboots of reboots.

 

 

NBC will launch its streaming service, now officially called Peacock, in April, NBCUniversal said Tuesday. The service is pinning its hopes on streaming success against a ballooning group of competitors by leaning into popular titles like The Office and Parks and Recreation, a library of movies from its studios and a slate of originals that includes a bunch of reboots (including reboots of reboots).

 

The company didn't specify pricing, other than to confirm that Peacock will have a paid subscription and another tier supported by advertising. That ad-supported tier may be a cheaper subscription, similar to rival streaming services Hulu and CBS All Access, but earlier reports indicated NBC wants it to be free. (Note: CBS is the parent company of CNET.)

 

NBCUniversal hopes to make a reboot of The Office too, which itself was a reboot of a British series, according to Deadline. A revival of The Office would join Peacock reboots of Battlestar Galactica (itself a reboot of 1970s sci-fi series) by Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail, as well as Punky Brewster and Saved by the Bell. 

 

 

The Office will still be available on Netflix until January 2021.

 

NBC's forthcoming service will be launching at a time when seemingly every major media property is putting out its own streaming option. In addition to established competition like Netflix, the world's biggest subscription streaming service with more than 150 million members, Peacock will be competing against new efforts from Disney called Disney Plus and from HBO-owner WarnerMedia called HBO Max, not to mention a big-budget streaming service coming from Apple called Apple TV Plus. 

 

Peacock won't be NBC's first stab at streaming. For years, it was a partner in Hulu; NBCUniversal's parent company Comcast struck a deal to hand over its minority share in Hulu to Disney earlier this year. And NBC also took a stab at a niche comedy-focused paid streaming service Seeso in 2014, but it folded less than three years later. 

 

The company says it will have more than 15,000 hours of content available, and Peacock will be "center stage" for streaming the 2020 Summer Olympics taking place in Tokyo, Japan. 

 

Other content highlights include:

• Legacy TV shows like 30 Rock, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Frasier, Saturday Night Live, Cheers, Downton Abbey and The Real Housewives
• Originals shows being developed by late-night host Jimmy Fallon, SNL producer Lorne Michael, film star Jada Pinkett Smith and The Good Place creator Mike Schur
• Films from Universal Pictures, Focus Features and Dreamwork Animation like Bridesmaids, Casino and films from the Fast & Furious franchise
• Original animated programming from Dreamworks Animation, the studio behind Shrek and Kung-Fu Panda

 

NBC's press release included a longer summary of confirmed content for Peacock. 

 

"The name Peacock pays homage to the quality content that audiences have come to expect from NBCUniversal," Bonnie Hammer, chairman of the companies direct-to-consumer and digital enterprises, said in the release. "Peacock will be the go-to place for both the timely and timeless – from can't-miss Olympic moments and the 2020 election, to classic fan favorites like The Office."

 

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