NBC Local Media is launching new “Locals Only” Websites in several U.S. cities that will provide news and information drawn from various sources, including NBC’s owned-and-operated stations.
Part of an industry-wide focus on hyper-localism, the new sites, which launch Monday in Chicago before rolling out other major cities in the coming weeks, are designed to standalone rather than exist as part of a local station Website. They will replace the current station marketing sites under new Web address (see list below)
"These sites are a departure from what we've done in the past and the next step in our mission to provide truly relevant local content to consumers on the media platform of their choice," said NBC Local Media president John Wallace in a statement. "Our goal was to create a new type of user experience that's less an extension of our TV stations and more of an online destination for the latest local news, information and entertainment. These sites are about putting consumers first and giving them the content they're looking for from the best available sources."
After today’s Chicago launch, new sites go live in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco on October 16; in Dallas, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. on October 20; and in New York and Hartford on October 27.
The launch marks the latest effort by NBC Local Media—which comprises 10 NBC O&Os; the out-of-home focused NBC Everywhere; lifestyle programmer LX.TV; and entertainment marketer Skycastle Entertainment—to expand its multiplatform content and distribution. That strategy includes the launch of a 24-hour news channel on the digital tier of flagship station WNBC.
