Facebook does a Netflix, to debut in premium TV shows next month

There will be both long duration shows on the pattern of 'House of Cards' and 5-10 minutes ones

Facebook is making a debut in premium television and developing around 24 shows that will be premiered in mid-June, media reports said.

There will be both long duration shows on the pattern of 'House of Cards' and also 5-10 minutes shows that will be added to Facebook app's video tab daily, Business Insider reported on Friday.

"It's part of a major initiative at the company to begin siphoning away some of the billions of dollars that are spent on television advertising ever year -- a major growth opportunity for Facebook, which is running out of room in the News Feed to show more ads," Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was quoted as saying.

It is believed that a virtual reality dating show from Conde Nast Entertainment is among the shows that Facebook has greenlit.

Facebook is also trying to rope in "A-list celebrities" for other shows, and it is rumoured that one big (anonymous) star has already agreed to a deal.

Facebook will also be soon among the tech giants making their entry into Hollywood as the company is currently looking for people who can create its own video programming.

The social networking giant is looking for a film producer, which was posted to LinkedIn last week. The producer is required to "develop, script, produce and edit sharable motion picture content.

However, the launch date could be pushed again. Facebook had initially planned to launch the TV shows in mid-April.

"But (Facebook) decided to instead make the debut in time for the Cannes Lions advertising festival, which starts on June 17," the report said.

--IANS

qd/py/bg