As Townhall reported previously, CNN+ has been seemingly doomed from the start and Tuesday brought more proof that the streaming platform is acting as more of a minus on the balance sheets of CNN and parent company Warner Bros. Discovery.
It's no secret that CNN as a cable news network has been struggling to attract or retain viewers for quite some time, making the company's decision to spin off a paid streaming platform a head-scratcher — if people won't watch for (basically) free, why would they pay to subscribe for more from the same source? When CNN+ launched, it wasn't even available on some of the most common smart TVs and streaming devices, further limiting its appeal. Soon after launch, it was reported that the streaming platform was not doing as well as executives expected despite CNN hosts hawking the service for weeks leading up to the launch.
Then on Tuesday, Axios reported that Warner Bros. Discovery "has suspended all external marketing spend for CNN+ and has laid off CNN's longtime chief financial officer" as it works on deciding what to do with the apparent dead weight of its new streaming platform.
SCOOP: CNN+ looks doomed.
— Axios (@axios) April 19, 2022
Warner Bros. Discovery has suspended all external marketing spend for CNN+ and has laid off CNN's longtime CFO as it weighs what to do with it moving forward. https://t.co/3s9LRXImDT
According to Axios' scoop based on conversations with five sources, CNN+ has landed around 150K subscribers out of its reported hopes to land 2 million subs in the first year and reach between 15 and 18 million within four years. But CNN's new parent company — that seems to have been quite out of step with CNN's plans — wants to "eventually build one giant service around HBO Max." Currently, Warner Bros. Discovery has CNN+, Discovery+, and a smattering of other streaming platforms for different channels in its portfolio that mean users need to have accounts on and pay for each individual service.
CNN's executives are reportedly not thrilled with the quick changes being made by its new parent company "to dismantle what they see as an eventual lifeline for the cable network," reported Axios. CNN initially planned to make their streaming spinoff profitable within four years by infusing $1 billion in the platform. But now, CNN executives are of the mindset that the streaming service has been "knee-capped" by their new Warner Bros. Discovery bosses which will prevent CNN+ from challenging other subscription-based news offerings such as The Washington Post (2.7 million subscribers) and The Wall Street Journal (2.9 million subscribers).
Those new bosses apparently prefer to focus on using CNN's existing — albeit shrinking — reach on its website and free app to push ad-supported content that doesn't require a subscription while making other premium CNN+ content available on its existing HBO Max platform.
The decision from Warner Bros. Discovery is seemingly part of the parent company's goal of returning CNN to actual hard news as its opinion and other content fails to compete with #1 Fox News Channel. That goal also includes, according to Axios, replacing what used to be fired Chris Cuomo's prime time slot that brought us hits like the giant q-tip and Cuomo Brother Comedy Hour with a live news show.
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