
Discovery Communications is pushing deeper into scripted programming, with TLC working with Tyler Perry, whose series have helped turn around OWN, its joint venture with Oprah Winfrey.
At an upfront presentation in Chicago last week and a press briefing in New York Thursday, Discovery, best known for its reality programming, announced it will also take scripted looks at the stories of the Unabomber on Discovery Channel and O.J. Simpson on Investigation Discovery.
Working from a script most large programmers are employing, Discovery also detailed its plans to use data to create more effective advertising as part of its One Discovery offering.
Were connecting our fans with your brands, Discovery ad sales president Joe Abruzzese told a packed house at media agency Spark. One Discovery will put your brands at the center of every consumer touchpoint.
Paul Guyardo, Discoverys chief commercial officer, said Discovery can be a powerful marketing platform to you and your clients across TV, digital, branded entertainment, Web native, audience delivery product, social media VR, talent and custom production.
He added that Discovery Go, the companys streaming app, is delivering an incremental audience with 50% of the streams coming from 18-to-34 year olds. With some TLC shows, between 60% and 70% of the streams are viewers from that millennial demographic, he said.
Discovery Engage, the companys ad sales data platform, houses high powered analytics for targeting, optimization and measurement to deliver greater effectiveness and impact for your ads, Keith Kazerman, head of advertising sales product strategy and development, told the Spark staff.
For example, if an auto company wants to reach a target audience in the market to buy a new car, Discovery would marshal data from Experian on potential car buyers then match those individuals with actual TV viewers using Nielsen respondent level data.
The Discovery Engage optimization engine utilizes sophisticated algorithms to find the best placements of your ads across our portfolio of networks to reach that specific target audience with the right message at that right moment, Kazerman said.
In the car example, Engage delivers a detailed and transparent schedule that pinpoints which networks, dayparts and programs that target audience is likely to view during the campaign.
Not only will we guarantee we reach your target audience and measure impressions, but well go one step further. Were one of the very few content companies that has access to set top box data, which provides us the ability to deliver true ROI measurability and determine the brand lift or sales lift generated by the campaign.
Kazerman said Discovery is in the marketplace developing a small number of partnerships with agencies and clients to launch Discovery Engage. These first movers will partner with us to shape the future of the use of data and technology in advertising, he said.
Discoverys networks also talked about upcoming programming strategies.
TLC is getting into the scripted business with Perrys series Too Close to Home, about a young woman working in Washington who gets caught up in a scandal and has to return to the small town where she grew up. The series is expected to premiere in the second half of 2016.
TLC is also getting back into the home category. One show features designer Nate Berkus, his husband Jeremiah Brent and their daughter Poppy as they renovate their own home.
TLC will be launching a new brand campaign using the theme I am, to highlight unique individuals different values and support them against bullies and critics.
Investigation Discovery also unveiled a new slogan: Real People. Real Stories.
The network, which grew last year to be No. 1 with women 25-54, will air 650 hours of original content next season, with program premieres on 360 nights.
Jumping into the suddenly popular O.J. genre, ID plans to air its version, executive produced by Martin Sheen, called Hard Evidence: OJ Is Innocent, which takes the point of view that Simpson didnt commit the crime and everything we thought we knew about this story was wrong, said general manager Kevin Bennett.
ID has also sent investigators to join law enforcement in Chillicothe, Ohio, where six women went missing and four have turned up dead. The case is ongoing, which means the story could change right up until the six-part series, The Vanishing Women, premieres on June 6.
In addition, ID will air a series of scripted movies that tell stories ripped from the headlines.
Discovery, which will air the scripted series Harley and the Davidsons, about the beginnings of the famed motorcycle company, is also working on Manifesto, about the FBI profiler who caught Ted Kaczynski, the Unabomber. The series is produced by Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunettis Trigger Street.
Science Channel is bringing back its Punkin Chunkin special after a few years in the patch and searching for a new generation of mythbusters with the series The Search for the Next MythBusters.
The network will also take viewers on a voyage to the largest planet with Mission Jupiter.
Animal Planet goes to the dogs with a series, Life of Dogs, to the vet with Texas Vets, and the Bronx Zoo with The Zoo.
Discovery is also offering native digital programming with two brands that target millennials.
One is Seeker, which aims to feed curiosity that helps viewers experience, observe and explore their world, Suzanne Kolb, executive VP and general manager of Discovery Digital Networks told Spark in Chicago.
The other brand is SourceFed Studio, which is more focued on comedy, including parodies of Discovery shows like Naked and Afraid.
This is content engineered to succeed across all digital and social platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, Snapchat, and a soon to launch updated version of seeker.com, Kolb said.
Discoverys production facilities ca
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
02/04/2026
L3Harris has successfully powered the historic launch of the Artemis II mission, providing propulsion and avionics....
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Already deployed extensively by NBC Sports, FOR-A Corporation will demonstrate GoVertical! AiDi, the real-time 9:16 autocropping feature of viztrick AiDi, durin...
02/04/2026
Interra Systems, a provider of end-to-end quality assurance solutions for the digital media industry, announced that Elite Media Technologies has selected its B...
02/04/2026
Harmonic's Media Processing Solutions Maximize Bandwidth Efficiency for Terrestrial Broadcast Delivery
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced that TDF, a...
02/04/2026
NBC Sports Deploys viztrick AiDi to Stream Live Events in 9:16 Mobile-First Formats with Auto Tracking, Development Signals Strategic Shift for FOR-A
Long reco...
02/04/2026
Evergent will showcase new innovations in subscriber lifecycle management and monetization at NAB Show 2026 (Las Vegas, April 18 22), including:
New advances i...
02/04/2026
Riedel Communications is proud to be part of Binghamton University, State University of New York, Athletics' milestone year, celebrating the university'...
02/04/2026
Encompass Digital Media and Techex have today announced new, fully managed, cloud-native Master Control services designed to meet the growing operational demand...
02/04/2026
Avid today announced it will showcase new innovations designed to help media companies win in the new media economy at NAB Show 2026 (April 18 22, Las Vegas Co...
02/04/2026
PlayBox Neo helps AIS PLAY kick-off premier football content direct to fans
PlayBox Neo has provided MIMO Tech with a brand-new major installation to extend it...
02/04/2026
Globo has transitioned its primary content distribution to Secure Reliable Transport over a fully IP-based managed backbone using Synamedia's Quortex PowerV...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/04/2026
Student Spotlight: Al-Fadl Salem The Danish singer recently performed for the queen of Denmark.
April 1, 2026
By
Editorial Staff
Image by Junia Morrow
Wh...
02/04/2026
Taku Hirano's Career Is Defined by Identity Whether he's performing, composing, teaching, or developing instruments, the do-it-all percussionist sees ...
02/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils Official Trailer for The Trials of Winnie Mandela
Entertainment
02 April 2026
GlobalSouth Africa
Link copied to clipboard
...
02/04/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Announces Start of Production and New Cast for Second ...
02/04/2026
Back to All News
The Trailer for Ronaldinho: The One and Only Features Never-Be...
02/04/2026
Red Seat Ventures Launches Speakeasy, a New Hosting, Distribution and Monetizati...
02/04/2026
GoVertical! AiDi Powers Real-Time 9:16 Autocropping for Immediate Streaming to M...
02/04/2026
By Lance Maurer, CEO
Image generated by AI
Engineering is supposed to be fun....
02/04/2026
2FM Breakfast to extend on weekday mornings from 6am to 10am
Doireann Garrihy m...
02/04/2026
RT News & Current Affairs is pleased to announce the appointment of RT Radio 1 reporter, Barry Lenihan, as Political Correspondent.
Barry has reported across...
02/04/2026
No joke - GFN Thursday is skipping the tricks and heading straight into the games. April kicks off with ten new titles, bringing fresh adventures to GeForce NOW...
01/04/2026
As sports media organization continue to seek out new ways to streamline their p...
01/04/2026
The SVG GFX Forum hit New York City earlier this month for a day packed with sessions focused on the creative strategy and technology behind today's cutting...
01/04/2026
This year, Spotify celebrates the five-year anniversary of EQUAL, our global pro...
01/04/2026
Analogue-style tape splicing in the digital domain
In this era of digital recording and multiple layers of Undo, it seems that the fading art of tape splici...
01/04/2026
Latest release introduces new Orbita Engine
Zero G's latest release marks the start of a new series of libraries, as well as introducing an all-new engi...
01/04/2026
Until now, one format has largely been left behind
Warm Audio's extensive product range includes modern-day recreations of all manner of sought-after s...
01/04/2026
A piano with glass vessels for strings!
The Crow Hill Company's recently released Gong Piano offered a refreshing new take on piano libraries, harnessin...
01/04/2026
Remote Streaming Studio Condenser
Aim Audio have just revealed their latest creation, the ESSENCE RS Remote Streaming Studio Condenser, which becomes the wo...
01/04/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/04/2026
Bilbao, April 1st, 2026 - AgileTV, a leading provider of end-to-end TV technolog...
01/04/2026
Green Hippo is excited to announce the launch of its new Hippotizer Media Server training courses at Pixel Academy, a purpose built AV learning hub combining ha...
01/04/2026
TAG Video Systems, a global leader in IP-native broadcast monitoring, multiviewing, and quality control, today announced a collaboration with Oracle Cloud Infra...
01/04/2026
Professional Wireless Systems (PWS), a leading provider of wireless audio solutions and RF management, was on site at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, wher...
01/04/2026
AgileTV, a leading provider of end-to-end TV technology solutions, has deployed next , the new IPTV platform of the Austrian telco LIWEST, marking the first st...
01/04/2026
LTN, a leader in fully managed IP video transport, and Ateme, a global leader in video compression and delivery solutions, today announced a collaboration integ...
01/04/2026
Adobe Unveils Powerful New Innovations for Creative Pros in Adobe Illustrator
Deepa Subramaniam April 1, 2026
0 Comments
I'm excited to share that...
01/04/2026
Boland Communications Introduces QD4K315HDR10 QD-OLED Series Monitors for Live P...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/04/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...