NEW YORK— NBCU’s Peacock streaming service will finally bow on Amazon's Fire TV devices on June 24, nearly a year after the SVOD service was launched nationwide and more than a year after it first became available on Comcast systems.
The long-running dispute highlighted the growing power that streaming platforms like Amazon's Fire TV and Roku have in the rapidly expanding OTT marketplace.
The deal will give the service access to Amazon’s large user base and will help NBCU’s Olympic coverage plans.
The company separately announced some of its plans to stream Olympic coverage on Peacock starting July 15.
The deal also included an agreement for NBCUniversal network apps to be carried on Fire TV and Fire Tablets. NBCUniversal’s 15 network apps on these Amazon devices will include NBC, Bravo, NBC News, NBC Sports and Telemundo, among others.
“We look forward to building on our existing partnership with Fire TV’s millions of customers and offering them Peacock’s undeniable line-up of original, library and film content,” said Matt Bond, chairman of content distribution for NBCU, in a statement. “This marks another great step in reaching audiences everywhere with the breadth of NBCUniversal’s full entertainment, film, Hispanic, news and sports portfolio.”
The companies noted that the Peacock app will launch on Fire TVs and Fire tablets starting Thursday June 24 and will be compatible with the entire Fire TV product line-up including Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Stick Lite, and Fire TV smart TV.
At launch, Fire TV customers can search for and open Peacock using their voice with Alexa just by saying “Alexa, open Peacock.”
Full Alexa title integration will roll out later this year, which will allow customers to navigate the entire Peacock catalog from the Alexa Voice Remote, or by using voice from across the room with Fire TV Cube or by pairing an Echo device to any Fire TV streaming media stick or Fire TV smart TV, the companies said.
In terms of Olympic coverage Peacock today announced it will launch a Tokyo Olympics destination on July 15, featuring live coverage of some of the Games’ biggest events, including gymnastics, track and field, and the U.S. Men’s Basketball Team’s pursuit of their fourth straight gold.
As part of the coverage, Peacock will feature new daily live shows, original programming, Olympics channels, full event replays and curated highlights of NBC Olympics’ coverage. All of Peacock’s Tokyo Olympics programming will be available to stream for free, with the exception of USA Men’s Basketball live coverage that will be available to Peacock Premium subscribers.
