Scoop: CNN to launch new "CNN Weather" app
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CNN plans to launch a new app, "CNN Weather" by the end of the year, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: It's part of a broader plan by the network to invest more in lifestyle and subscription news products as part of its digital transformation under its CEO Mark Thompson.
- The network also plans to introduce a new cross-platform streaming service this year.
Zoom in: CNN Weather will combine expertise from CNN's meteorology and climate teams in a mobile-first app that will provide targeted local weather forecasts and 24/7 coverage of major regional and national weather events, CNN's EVP of digital products and services Alex MacCallum told employees in a town hall Tuesday.
- Thompson plans to officially announce the news at its advertising presentation in New York on Wednesday, a source said.
- The app will be available for free to start, but it's expected to eventually be paywalled.
- A spokesperson confirmed the launch and provided a comment from MacCallum, who said, "As we build out a subscription portfolio and offering for our users, we are looking to launch a series of lifestyle-oriented products that become essential to people's everyday lives. Weather is a natural fit for our audience and for the CNN portfolio."
Zoom out: CNN has been beefing up its climate and weather teams ahead of launch.
- The company, which has decades of experience covering breaking weather events, is considered an authority in emergency weather events, especially internationally.
- The company was one of the first major international outlets on the ground to cover the catastrophic flooding in Libya in 2023, as well as the Turkey-Syria earthquakes that same year.
- CNN is nominated for an Emmy for Hurricane Milton coverage from last year.
The big picture: CNN's digital evolution has been rocky amid leadership and ownership changes.
- The network launched a subscription streaming app, CNN+, in 2022, only to have it shuttered weeks after launch by its new owners, Warner Bros. Discovery.
What's next: CNN Weather is likely the first of many lifestyle and subscription products that CNN will experiment with as it looks to find its future beyond cable.
Disclosure: The author is a paid contributor for CNN.
