Yahoo has announced that it has green lit two online television shows.
As we reported April 16th, Yahoo was rumored to be ready to pay for a series by Girls writer Lesley Arfin. They haven’t, but they’ve not been shy in throwing some money around.
According to a report from AdAge:
Next year Yahoo will premiere two half-hour comedies that will mark the portal’s first foray into TV-style long form programming. “Other Space” will be an outer-space laffer created by “Bridesmaids” director-and-producer Paul Feig. And “Varsity Blues” producer Mike Tollin and “The Office” director Bryan Gordon have teamed on “Sin City Saints,” a work-comedy set in a fictional pro basketball team’s front office. Both shows will release all eight of their episodes at once, a la Netflix with “House of Cards.”
The rapid move into original content from web plays was highlighted previously with Xbox Entertainment Studios also green lighting a range of programs.
The move into original content will likely be celebrated by Hollywood and the TV industry, if they could stop carrying on about piracy, and it’s not without precedent: Netflix’s House of Cards has been an Emmy winning success.
That said: how many people will visit Yahoo to watch original television is yet to be established. If it’s seriously good content if may well work, but it’s also unlikely to be another House of Cards.
Credit where due though: Marissa Meyer at the helm of Yahoo hasn’t been afraid to try new things: and this is certainly new for Yahoo.
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