On Monday, social media network Twitter Inc. (NYSE:TWTR) announced that it will partner with CBSN, the streaming service of CBS Corp.’s (NYSE:CBS) CBS News, to stream the network’s live coverage of the upcoming conventions.
The Republican National Convention is set for July 18-21 in Cleveland Ohio, and the Democratic National Convention will be held on July 25-28 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
CBS News will use its Twitter account—under the handle @CBSNLive—to live stream its coverage of the conventions. According the Wall Street Journal, who cites a Twitter spokesman, “The live stream will be accessible to those without a Twitter account…The video will be displayed alongside tweets about what is happening at the convention.”
This deal will mark the first time Twitter will live stream cable programming in a partnership with a broadcast network. The company has recently made moves to live stream sports. In April, Twitter announced its partnership with the National Football League to stream 10 Thursday night games when the season starts this fall. And just last week, the social media network live streamed free Wimbledon coverage for its users.
While the coverage on Twitter will be much more extensive than what is typically offered on other TV networks, it is uncertain if the deal will help boost the company’s user base, which is currently about 310 million monthly active users. And since you don’t need a Twitter account to view the live coverage, there is no guarantee that the deal will prompt new visitors to sign up or return after the conventions.
Twitter currently has a #3 (Hold) on the Zacks Rank.
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