CBS is fighting to make it on the Net as the lone wolf go-it-alone TV network. It’s the only US major network that doesn’t belong to Hulu.com.
This week, CBS said that in September its CBS Interactive online video service jumped three places to become the fourth-largest online site overall and the biggest TV network site in unique video viewers, according to ComScore Videomatrix.
It reported double-digit growth in unique viewers, videos and minutes during the month when the US TV season begins. Driving the increase was content from CBS.com, CBSNews.com, CBSSports.com, CBS College Sports, CNET, GameSpot, TV.com and Last.fm.
Going head-to-head with the Disney/Fox/NBCU-owned hulu.com is CBS’ TV.com, which CBS calls “the place where television lives online.” It had its tenth consecutive month of year-over-year growth with quadruple-digit gains in unique viewers (3,763%), video streams (4,341%) and minutes (6,031%).
The top 10 Web sites as measured by unique video viewers, according to ComScore, are:
1. Google
2. Fox Interactive Media
3. Yahoo sites
4. CBS Interactive
5. Viacom Digital
6. Microsoft sites
7. Hulu
8. Tremor Media Video Network
9. Jambo Media
10. Facebook.com
CBS Interactive CEO Quincy Smith is leaving in January, according to BusinessWeek. The magazine said Smith, a CBS employee since 2006, was CBS CEO Leslie Moonves’ top new media advisor and a key architect of the media giant’s $1.8 billion acquisition last year of online company CNET. He also accelerated CBS’ drive to add sports like college basketball to the company’s online services.
Smith, it is said, kept CBS out of Hulu, which the three other major TV networks are operating. Instead he got CBS Interactive started with its own TV.com online service, which competes with Hulu. It also, we add, floods the press’ inboxes with announcements about how great it’s doing.
Smith will consult with CBS on its interactive ventures but intends to start his own consulting firm. Current CBS Interactive president Neil Ash will continue as president.