Skip to main content

Screen Wars Thought Leader Interviews are also available on

SpotifyApple PodcastGoogle Podcast
State of the Screens

NBCU’s Peacock Marks Media’s Latest Try to Connect Consumers, Commercials

By January 23, 2020No Comments

Peacock is launching w/ three pricing tiers according to Variety:
1) Free – Ad-supported w/ limited programming
2) Premium ($5) – Ad-supported w/ access to a larger content library
3) Premium + Ad-Free ($10) – Full access to programming (600 movies + 400 TV series)

Peacock launch details according to Axios:
1) 
Xfinity customers – April 15th
2) National launch – July 15th

Ad minutes per hour, according to NBCUniversal:
1) 
Linear TV – 16-20
2) 
Digital video – 8
3) 
Peacock – 5

Quick math on the advertising model for Peacock:
1) 
Ad minutes/hour – 5
2) 
30s spots/hour – 10
3) Ad revenue/user/month – ≈ $5.20 (see below)
3) CPM $ –  $30
4) $/spot – $0.03
5) Spots/month – 173
6) The service hits the revenue target at 17 hours/viewer/month

Quote from Linda Yaccarino – Chairman of Advertising & Partnerships @ NBCUniversal:
“With Peacock, we’re giving consumers the free service they want and advertisers the reach and scale they desperately need—this is the best thing to happen to everyone’s screens in a long time…Peacock marks a doubling-down on the ad-supported ecosystem, and the next phase of NBCUniversal’s One Platform offering.”

Flashback: Comcast to Spend $2 Billion on NBCU’s Peacock Streaming Service in First Two Years

Peacock financial estimates by 2024:
1) Accounts – 30-35M
2) Monthly revenue/user – $6-$7
3) Total revenue –  $2.5B

Podcast: NBC’s Peacock enters the Streaming Wars

Video #1: Peacock Investor Day Presentation

Video #2: Peacock’s model will be great for the consumer, says Lightshed’s Greenfield

More #1: NBCUniversal’s Peacock Will Look More Like Cable Than Like Netflix

More #2: NBCUniversal’s Peacock ends phase one of the streaming era; phase two will test theory of disruptive innovation

More #3: ‘Safety net’: To prop up Peacock, NBC uses the power of its existing TV, ad sales business

Michael Beach

Michael Beach is the Chief Executive Officer of Cross Screen Media, a media analytics and software company that enables marketers to plan, activate, and measure CTV and linear TV at the local level. Michael is also the founder and editor of State of the Screens, a weekly newsletter focused on video advertising that is a must-read for thought leaders in the advertising industry. He has appeared in such publications as PBS Frontline, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Axios, CNBC and Bloomberg, and on NPR’s Planet Money podcast.