NEW YORK—NBC News Now has expanded its international distribution into Latin America with launches in Mexico and Brazil on Samsung TV Plus.

The deal to make NBC News’ 24/7 streaming news network available for free through Samsung TV Plus makes it the first U.S.-based news channel available on the platform in those territories.

NBC News reported that the expansion follows NBC News Now’s record performance in the third quarter and during the week of the U.S. presidential election, but did not provide specific data beyond reporting that on Election Day, NBC News Now delivered its best day on record with over 100 million views.

NBC News Now is fully distributed across every free, ad-supported streaming platform in the U.S., as well as on NBCNews.com and the NBC News app, the company said. NBC News Now, which launched in 2019, already has international distribution in Europe in the United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, France, Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland.

Comcast has added more than 20 free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels from Xumo Play, NBC and Sky into its Xfinity Stream app. The channels are available free to any Xfinity customer, regardless of whether they subscribe to Xfinity Video.

Upon signing into Stream, customers will see free TV shows and movies seamlessly integrated within the channel guide and elsewhere throughout the experience. This approach makes it easy for Xfinity customers to surf between any subscribed channels and FAST channels to find something to watch without having to toggle between apps.

These new channels include NBC News NOW, Sky News, and 19 Xumo-branded channels, offering customers a wide variety of news, movies and TV shows spanning genres such as comedy, crime TV, black cinema, lifestyle, reality TV, game shows, kids and more.  Comcast plans to bring more FAST channels to the Stream app in the future.

“The launch marks the latest evolution of the Xfinity Stream app, which is increasing content choices for video and non-video customers alike, including weekly samplings of premium programming as part of ‘Free This Week,’ the ability to rent and buy shows and movies, and the ability to watch movies included in Xfinity Rewards,” said Vito Forlenza, Vice President, Entertainment Apps, Comcast Cable.

The new FAST channels are currently available in the Xfinity Stream app on iOS, Android and Fire TV devices, through web browsers on xfinity.com/stream, and via casting to supported AirPlay and Chromecast devices. Additional platforms, including Xfinity Flex and Xumo TV, are coming soon.

NEW YORK—NBCU News Group is significantly expanding its streaming and digital operations with plans to add 200 new positions and several new hours of live, original programming to NBC News Now. 

The company is expecting to fill the jobs over the next few months. The new slate of NBC News NOW programming will debut this fall. 

The investment is being made at a time when streaming news operations are seeing rapid growth and new organizations have been making significant investments to expand their streaming operations.  

NBCU News is hoping that new staffers and programming will help it build on the success NBC News Now has seen since its launch in 2019. 

NBC News Now currently averages more than 44 million views and 14 million hours watched per month, the company reported. 

“When we combine the power of our portfolio, across our many platforms, our reach and impact is unmatched,” said Cesar Conde, chairman of NBCU News Group. “Our core focus is to consistently innovate in how our brands deliver distinctive, high-quality journalism. This substantial investment in streaming and digital allows us to meet the needs of news consumers in a rapidly-changing digital media industry.”

In addition to launching NBC News Now, NBCU News Group also debuted Today All Day and The Choice from MSNBC on Peacock in 2020, making it the only news organization with three major streaming channels. 

The NBCU News Group reported that the majority of the 200 new jobs will be in NBC News Now’s growing streaming operations and programming. Those new jobs follow a recent investment of more than 70 new hires.

The news group also noted that it would be doubling the Today newsroom, growing NBC News’ successful breaking news and beat reporting, expanding the MSNBC digital footprint and continuing the momentum of commerce and CNBC Pro. All of this will be underpinned by continued investment in mobile, video, social, product, engineering, etc.  

The new NBC News Now live, original programming will include a daily, primetime news program anchored by senior national correspondent, Tom Llamas; a daily evening show and weekly special newsmagazine series hosted by senior Washington correspondent and anchor, Hallie Jackson; and an evening news analysis and explainer program, hosted by anchor, Joshua Johnson.

NBC News Now will also continue to expand its weekday live programming throughout the fall and add to its weekend live, original programming beginning in Q1, 2022. The streaming network will also begin its international distribution later this year. 

NEW YORK—NBC News plans to launch a streaming service called NBC News Now in early May.

Speaking at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas, Sunday, NBC News President Noah Oppenheim said the free, ad-supported streaming service will launch with eight hours of programming, including live updates at the top of every hours.

CBS News and ABC News have also launched live news streaming services. Those news operations do not have a 24-hour cable news network like NBCU’s MSNBC.

News tends to skew older, but streaming news has proved attractive to some younger viewers, although Oppenheim said NBC News Now would not be limited to appealing to young people.

“We will be doing original work that will be specific for the streaming service, we will be drawing from the reporting that takes place across all the other NBC News properties,” he said. “We will actually be reaching into other corners of NBCUniversal, E! News, sports, you name it, for some of that content."

”When breaking news mandates, we’ll go up live as well,” Oppenheim said. “So for folks who don’t have a traditional cable subscription it will be great way to access the reporting of NBC News.”

NBC News’ parent company recently acquired Sky, which has a big news operation oversees that the streaming service will be able to draw from, he added.

The service will be available via the NBC News app, where there will be a link to NBC News Now.