The new streaming news service CNN+, created by the left wing cable network under the auspices of former media executive Jeff Zucker before he was ousted, is reportedly receiving less than 10,000 daily users despite attracting high profile talent.
With two weeks since the streaming service launched, CNBC reports that less than 10,000 people are using CNN+ daily. They quote “people familiar with the matter,” ostensibly at CNN.
CNN+’s success was question from its inception, with muttering about its prospects for success common around the time Zucker was ousted from the network.
Nonetheless, the service attracted top talent from competing cable news networks, including Chris Wallace from Fox News and Kasie Hunt from NBC News. It also features high profile CNN personalities Anderson Cooper and Wolf Blitzer.
Meanwhile, it was also reported today that there are “big cuts coming for CNN+” as executives hoped the service would accrue 2 million subscribers in its first year.
Axios revealed that “hundreds of millions of dollars are expected to be cut” from CNN+’s budget, and reveals that CNN poured “around $300 million” into the project.
Still, Axios notes that the streaming service has just launched on Roku, a popular over the top device and Smart TV manufacturer, and suggests that the larger audience may result in more subscribers.
Zucker left CNN after admitting to a consensual relationship with an employee only months after CNN anchor Chris Cuomo left the network due to allegations that he used his position as a journalist to help his brother, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, evade punishment for alleged sexual harassment.
At the same time, CNN’s parent company merged with Discovery, and the new management has suggested the network will return to its original focus on hard news, potentially leaving some of its high profile anchors – who appeal mostly to liberal audiences – looking for a new place to land.
