Conde Nast Plans Scripted VR Series to Attract New Audience

Conde Nast is attempting to appeal to the online audience that does not read the company’s lifestyle magazine, so it will start expanding its online video offerings. The Conde Nast Entertainment (CNE) division will produce two original scripted virtual reality series with Jaunt VR, which recently announced its planned LA studio. These new series will be released on The Scene, Conde Nast’s online video platform. CNE plans to make 2,500 videos for The Scene in the next year with the help of new content partners.

This venture makes Conde Nast the first major publisher to create serialized content for VR. According to Reuters, one of the series will be in “narrative reality format” and people will be able to watch the immersive experience even if they do not have Samsung’s Galaxy Gear VR headset or the Google Cardboard device.

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The VR series will debut on The Scene, which has original videos from CNE and its content partners such as ABC News and Buzzfeed. Conde Nast just added 10 more content partners, including Billboard, Pitchfork, and The Onion. The company also announced plans for a new scripted series called “The Tyler Zone,” which will star Danny Pudi of “Community.” The show will be produced with 20th Century Fox and The Lonely Island comedy group.

The new foray into online video is an attempt to attract a new audience. “There isn’t very much overlap between people who are watching digital video and people who read all our magazines,” said Dawn Ostroff, president of CNE. “We’re able to go into a different medium and introduce our brand to different audiences.”

Conde Nast’s digital audience has now surpassed its print audience. Last year, the company averaged 17 million U.S. viewers a month, excluding mobile and some syndication viewers.

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