Amazon.com Inc
What Happened: The 2024 presidential election special will begin at 5 p.m. ET and has no end time. It will also feature guests to be named at a later date.
The guests will include media and news contributors, according to the Seattle-based company's announcement.
"Election Night Live with Brian Williams' will meet global viewers where they are, providing a unique, first-stop opportunity to follow the evening's results in an informative, accessible and non-partisan presentation directly on Prime Video," the company said.
Williams previously spent 28 years with NBC and MSNBC before leaving the media company in 2021. He is well-known in the space and could bring some interest to the event.
"After 41 years in the business -from local news to network shows to cable news -this feels like the next big thing. And the global marketplace of Amazon is a natural home for this first-of-its-kind venture," Williams said. "Together we will follow the storyline on election night wherever it leads us."
Prime Video's Albert Cheng said the election night offering will feature information from other major new sources and "complement the various partner news channels available on Prime Video."
Unlike other content on Prime Video, the election special will be free for anyone, regardless of if they have a Prime membership.
Why It's Important: The Prime Video election night special will be available in the U.S. and other territories. It comes as there is growing global interest in the outcome of the 2024 presidential election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump.
Benzinga recently reported that U.K. broadcaster Channel 4 was partnering with U.S. media company CNN on election day and night coverage. Special guests will include Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen, two central figures in the hush money case that saw Trump found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Televised events like presidential debates and town halls typically generate strong viewership. Media companies have been pitching Trump and Harris to make more appearances to help grow their audience and increase advertising revenue.
For Amazon, this could be a test for political content and additional growth in the live content space.
So far, the e-commerce company has grown its Prime Video streaming platform thanks to new original content, the acquisition of MGM and a strategy around sports and game shows.
Amazon is a partner with the National Football League on "Thursday Night Football" games and has other sports rights. These live events help boost its subscriber base for streaming.
Election night could be the latest test to see if streaming platforms can attract viewers from traditional networks for live events.
