Amazon said it is adding on-demand local news in 88 more cities to the news app on Fire TV.
The stories come from stations owned by The Walt Disney Co.’s ABC Television Stations, CBSN, Tegna, Cox, The E.W. Scripps Co. and Altice USA.
Amazon introduced local news last year in 12 cities, including New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.
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“Local news helps our customers stay connected to important issues and updates within their communities,” said Charlotte Maines, director of Amazon Fire TV. “In the last year especially, local news has been incredibly helpful in an uncertain environment and our viewers continue to ask for more news options. This expansion will bring a truly local experience to both Fire TV and the streaming industry.”
Newly added markets include Detroit, Phoenix, New Orleans, Salt Lake City and Orlando.
“Our distribution with Amazon provides viewers access to 49 local Tegna station brands they know and trust most for the highest quality local news,” said Adam Ostrow, chief digital officer, Tegna. “Local news is more important than ever to the communities we serve, and Fire TV and the Amazon news app help us deliver the stories and information that matter most to our audience regardless of which platform they use to consume news content.”
The service would compete with Sinclair Broadcast Group’s Stirr and VuIT, launched last year by Syncbak with an investment by Gray Television.
Financial terms were not disclosed.
“Scripps is committed to serving local viewers on every platform with accurate, reliable news and information that helps them live better lives,” said Brian Lawlor, Scripps’ president of local media. “Amazon’s thoughtful expansion of local news content on its Fire TV devices is a strong testament to the power of local news to keep communities safe and informed through everything 2020 has brought us, and everything ahead in 2021.”
Amazon’s news app is free and supported with advertising.
In addition to local news providers, it includes content from ABC News Live, CBS News, Reuters, Cheddar, Entertainment Weekly and Black News Channel.
