I've written a lot in recent weeks about some of the business challenges facing MSNBC (or whatever it ends up being called) when it becomes part of Comcast's Spinoff Island of Unwanted Cable Channels sometime next year.
I've been hearing from a few people there about some of the strategic questions facing executives and one of the big ones is what the streaming component of MSNBC looks like once it's independent. Like all linear-first cable news networks, MSNBC hasn't been able to simply offer interested viewers the ability to subscribe to a live feed of the channel unless it is part of a much larger cable bundle. But in a future where the network's leverage with cable TV providers is much reduced, what might MSNBC's streaming future look like?
According to people familiar with the discussions, one primary short-ish term goal is to develop a MSNBC-branded FAST channel. For the foreseeable future, that channel wouldn't be able to offer a live linear feed, but the goal would be to offer some sort of mix of next-day highlights (similar the mix you see on MSNBC.com), along with a lot of repurposed things ranging from video versions of podcasts to some of the videos people like Rachel Maddow are currently doing for the network's YouTube channel.
The thinking seems to be that while MSNBC needs a prominent branded FAST channel presence moving forward, there isn't likely to be much in the way of resources for original programming for the FAST channel. However, there seem to be a lot of questions about whether there is enough "other" stuff to fill the channel.
The long term goal is to build out a super fan outlet that would take advantage of the channel's most engaged viewers. The FAST channel could host replays of live events featuring MSNBC personalities (think things like book tour events or one-on-one newsmaker interviews). All with the hope that eventually there might be enough content and interest to roll out some sort of modestly-priced MSNBC+ offering down the road.
While that idea sounds a bit far-fetched, I think it would be possible if MSNBC did lean more into its left-of-center approach and created programming that was partisan but also not afraid to be extremely critical of the Democrat party and those politicians on the left. But if what I am hearing is correct and the plan is to tack the network more towards the mystical "non-partisan" approach long favored by NBC News executives, I have difficulty seeing there being much of a market for that mushy approach to news coverage.
