In a move which looks set to further highlight the company’s “long-term commitment to creating premium video with authentic storytelling,” AOL has announced its first UK Originals series.
Produced in association with 40 partners, two new original series featuring UK celebrities Richard Bacon, Tess Daly and Rochelle Humes are to become AOL’s first foray into UK video production, adding to the one million pieces of premium content already available on the AOL On platform across the globe.
Being Mum, which will be hosted by Daly and Humes, will see the hosts meet a range of people to discuss the ups, downs, ins and outs of motherhood; while 30 Something with Richard Bacon will see the former Five Live presenter meet “inspiring people who are putting their stamp on the world” – from Olympians to founders of some of the UK’s most successful companies.
“At AOL we are committed to creating original premium content that resonates with consumers and advertisers,” said Mark Melling, director of AOL Video, Europe.
“The lines between traditional and digital video are blurring and through the AOL On platform we are disrupting how premium video is created, curated, distributed and monetised.
“We’ve had fantastic success with our Originals series in the US with two Emmy nominations this year and one show picked up by VH1. We’re hugely excited today to announce our first slate of home produced commissions and look forward to replicating that success in the UK.”
AOL UK has also announced that it has chosen VivaKi as its advertising partner on four AOL Originals shows including The Future Starts Here and City Ballet. The programmes will be available through the AOL On Network in the UK and across AOL sites, including AOL, The Huffington Post, Engadget, TechCrunch and Parentdish.
The content will also be made available to other premium publishers within the AOL On Network.
