As Peacock continues to chase major players in the entertainment industry like Netflix, TikTok and YouTube, the streaming service is adopting similar strategies to its rivals with two new initiatives: mini-games and a vertical short-form video feed. The company presented these experiments at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas on Monday.
Starting this month, Peacock will begin piloting the new features on its iOS and Android apps ahead of a wider rollout later this spring. During the initial testing phase, a company spokesperson told TechCrunch that some users will see both games and vertical video playlists, while some will see one or the other, and some will see neither.
The platform will likely struggle to keep pace with other major streaming services as it faces challenges in growing subscribers. Peacock lags significantly, with just 36 million subscribers compared to Netflix’s impressive 282.72 million. Since launching its gaming division in 2021, Netflix has launched over 120 games. YouTube and Sling TV have also offered free gaming deals to compete.
Peacock is currently testing five games: Daily Sort, Daily Swap, Predictions, What The and Venn. These fast-paced games aim to increase fan engagement with the most popular titles, as they offer gameplay influenced by TV shows and sports programming. Tying games to popular IP is a smart move, as it attracts players who are interested in those titles.
For example, with Venn, players sort items into the correct circles based on a daily theme related to episodes of shows like Below Deck. The Predictions game allows users to predict the results of specific shows and sporting events, allowing them to go back later and see how accurate their guesses were.
Meanwhile, the streaming platform is also testing new vertical curated playlists, which will feature short clips from across Peacock’s library, such as TV shows, movies, sports and news. These will be updated daily and weekly, with many clips debuting exclusively on the app. Users can tap on clips to be directed to the corresponding show’s page, making it easy to access and watch.
As TikTok’s potential ban looms and users face shorter attention spans, Peacock’s vertical video playlists could become a popular feature for viewers looking for quick entertainment. The latest test follows Tubi, the free ad-supported streaming service owned by Fox, which also embraced short-form video with its new feature called “Scenes.”
