Inside Pluto TV’s Quest to Prove That Ad-Based Video on Demand Can Thrive

Advertising-based video on demand, which has often been looked at as the ugly duckling of streaming, has increasingly started to look attractive to viewers. Some of that is due to the coronavirus pandemic forcing millions of people to spend more time on the couch, searching for shows and movies to watch, with budget-conscious viewers now looking for more content without having to pony up more money. Pluto TV CEO Tom Ryan knew it was a “contrarian” move to launch an AVOD service in 2013, right as subscription streaming was taking off. Last year, ViacomCBS acquired the service, which already had been on the upswing. In May, ViacomCBS reported Pluto TV hit 24 million active viewers — up 55% from the same time the year before. By the end of 2020, ViacomCBS is aiming for Pluto TV to hit 30 million active viewers. “There’s no doubt in my mind we’ll hit the 30 million number by the end of the year,” Ryan recently told TheWrap. He also has no doubt ad-supported TV will still have a place in a streaming world dominated by Netflix and other SVOD services like Disney+ — a hunch that now appears to be panning out. “Consumers are...

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