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There were several executive shuffles at the top, bothbeforeandafterlaunch.
Kelly Campbell also knows something about leaving Hulu for Peacock.
Youre not there yet.
Whats the key to making that happen?
Its first and foremost content.
So that includes taking big swings when it comes to original series [and] films.
Thats where were making our biggest investments.
There was noHouse of Cardsmoment.
Peacock launchedmore than 70 originalsin the first year and a half.
We are looking to launch another 50 to 60 this year.
Thats exactly what were doing in partnership with our development team and studios.
Now that youve seen the data, how did that blitz of programming do?
Record breaking in every way.
Its hard to find the right words to express just how big February has been for us.
We launched the most-streamed Olympics, the most-streamed Super Bowl.
So we can only imagine just how high that can go.
When you say third-most title overall, youre referring to library shows and movies then, right?
I imagineTheOfficeandYellowstonewould be up near the top for you in terms of the other top two titles.
YellowstoneandThe Officeare incredibly successful on Peacock.
So to already be in that space with titles like that is pretty incredible.
And relative to other originals, I would sayBel-Airis on an entirely new trajectory.
You also mentioned the numbers for the Olympics.
I feel incredibly proud of the work the team did so you can make that true.
By all accounts, that means theyll be on Peacock instead starting in September.
That seems like a big deal.
We do think its a big deal.
The Macys Thanksgiving Day Parade is another example.
That became the most-watched NBC telecast of [2021] and the No.
2 live event in Peacock history at that time, behind onlyWrestleMania.
Were also experimenting with windowing.
You have the advantage of not having been in the trenches then, so you bring an outsiders perspective.
What do you think about how things played out over the first year or two?
Its really about having the right content and building a quality relationship with consumers.
Youre not going to hear us talking about these big numbers and providing no clarity on whats within them.
Were really focused on building a long-term, sustainable business.
Were in the long game.
Its not just about scale.
Its about scaling while building a quality relationship with consumers.
Were focused on the long game.
Do you think there was a mistake in how Peacock was initially branded?
The early campaign for the service was basically Peacock is free!
Was it wrong to send mixed messages to consumers?
I dont think it was a mistake.
I think it was a smart move.
I think the free and bundled approach played a really critical part in scaling Peacock.
The free tier served a couple of purposes.
First of all, it opened up the funnel.
Hows that working out?
WWE has been an incredibly successful partnership for Peacock since launch.
We haveWrestleMania, in fact, returning on April 3.
This is already one of our biggest live events of the year.
The user interface just worked a lot better.
But Peacock and a lot of streamers still struggle with user interface and experience.
Are we going to see any noticeable improvements within the next 6 to 12 months?
Is there a plan for change?
We have an aggressive road map.
Im glad youve noticed that weve been investing.
I think the Olympics is the best example of how far weve come.
Looking to the future, were investing in things that improve the overall experience.
Youll see us focusing on improving video playback experiences.
Those are all priorities for us over the course of this current year.
I wouldnt expect one day youll open Peacock and it will look entirely different.
You noted earlierMarryMewas a big success.
How important is film to your strategy overall?
Were very invested in film.
We believe film is incredibly valuable to streaming audiences.
We do that very much in partnership with Donna Langley and the Universal Pictures team more broadly.
When we look at the Peacock film strategy, we look at it through a few different lenses.
We are also still opportunistically bringing films from Universal to Peacock day-and-date.
Netflix has made a big deal out of having new movies every week.
With what sort of frequency do you want to have films premiere on Peacock?
Im hesitant to put an exact cadence out because this is something were actively exploring at the moment.
Do all the films have to have a big- or even a medium-size budget?
It seems like theres an opportunity to do lower-cost films, what we used to call made-for-TV movies.
I think theres absolutely an opportunity to make films that are very efficient from a budget perspective.
That doesnt have to mean that theres a hit to the quality.
Were definitely looking at all options when it comes to our investment portfolio.
I personally watch a lot ofColumboandRockfordFileson Peacock.
But it still seems like youve only scratched the surface of what you could be offering.
Any plans to expand classic content on the service?
We have increased our catalog by more than 500 percent in just our first year and a half.
Peacock has absolutely made a lot of progress, especially in its second year.
But it does still seem to have a bit of a brand problem.
Whats your response to those critics?
We are definitely not treating this business like a holding play.
Hopefully, thats clear.
We shared our content investment quite publicly in our earnings.
Do I think that we have a chance to continue to shape the understanding of Peacock?
But I think that we are on the right side of where the industry is going.
We have been focused on building a long-term, sustainable business.
Were coming out of our biggest month ever.
The business is off to a strong start in 2022.
Weve got tremendous wind in our sails and momentum with consumers …
I see it every day when I wake up and open my dashboard.
You just mentioned your dashboard.
First thing in the morning, thats what I do.
Some things dont change in TV.
[Laughs] Yeah.
