Youth programmer renews deal to reach mobile-first generation.
Viacom, looking to keep up with a mobile generation of cord cutters, said it is renewing its global deal with Snap Inc. and will develop and produce more shows for the messaging app.
The new deal expands the original pact with Snapchat. Viacom will produce new Show and Our Stories for Snapchat’s Discover feature.
Snapchat versions of MTV’s Girl Code and Cribs have been renewed. A new show based on MTV”s Promposal is also set to launch.
Viacom is committed to producing additional shows in various formats from MTV, BET and Comedy Central. Some are already in development.
Viacom will sell advertising in the programs and it and Snapchat will share revenue. The shares were not disclosed.
Viacom will also produce more Our Stories around tent-pole event like the Kids Choice Awards on Nickelodeon, Countdown to the VMA, VMA Awards, VMA Red Carpet, MTV EMA Awards, MTV TV and Movie Awards Red Carpet, MTV TV and Movie Awards, BET Experience, BET Red Carpet and BET Hip Hop Awards.
Viacom will also continue producing daily MTV channels in the U.S., France and an international edition.
Some of the programming is being produced by Viacom Digital Studios, a new unit designed to create content for digital online and social platforms.
Related: Viacom Makes Advanced Advertising Deal With Comcast
Viacom and Snapchat have been working together since 2015 when a Live Story was created form MTV’s Video Music Awards. The Live Story was sponsored by Taco Bell, Verizon, American Legacy and Covergirl.
The two companies made a multiyear deal in which Viacom would sell Snapchat ads in 2016. As part of the agreement Viacom created channels for Snapchat’s Discovery service and said it would invest in original programming for Snapchat
Snapchat has been working with a number of TV programmers to bring original content to its platforms. It launched its Discovery feature in 2015 with launch partners including CNN, Comedy Central, Food Network, National Geographic and Vice.
NBCU says its daily news show for Snapchat called Stay Tuned is going great, with more than 4 million subscribers.
But late last year, CNN canceled The Update, a show it was began producing exclusively for Snapchat just a few months earlier in August. Initially, CNN reportedly received fees for the show but those fees were ending and CNN didn’t think it could make money on its share of advertising revenue alone.
