My strongest recommendations for aspiring FAST Channel owners, are as follows:
Aim for distribution on the largest, high-profile platforms, ideally with built-in promotional budgets where possible, to facilitate discovery.
Outsource channel operations to experienced partners, allowing you to scale efficiently with minimal risk and overhead.
While high performing platforms offer reach, niche and emerging channels can often gain more meaningful traction by launching on smaller, strategically-aligned platforms. At VideoElephant, we’ve seen this playout firsthand, with our three successful owned channels – Beyond Paranormal, Travel Escapes, and Real Crime Uncovered - which have built loyal audiences on platforms like Sling, Plex, and TCL by tapping into genre-based demand. These platforms allow us to test, learn and iterate - gathering engagement data and optimizing programming and dayparts, laying the groundwork for expansion to larger distribution platforms.
In contrast, in the case of a major brand like USA Today, its FAST Channel is widely available on a selection of top platforms, including Roku, Samsung, and Vizio. In order to maintain that level of distribution, however, FAST Channels need to be effectively managed and distributed; and their programming and ad breaks need to be optimized to drive maximum attention and revenue. The USA Today FAST channel relies on VideoElephant’s FAST Managed Service to run all aspects of the channel to drive scale, an outgrowth of our long-standing relationship with Gannett. We manage linear schedule curation, audience-first content planning, targeted marketing, multi-platform distribution and partner relations, and full-scale monetization - all intended to attract new readers and advertisers and deepen existing relationships. This way, USA Today is able to reap the benefits of its FAST Channel without the operational burden.
We’ve recently partnered with EntrepreneurTV, an existing FAST Channel with distribution on very few platforms. Our aim is to unlock its full growth potential - expanding audience, increasing revenue, and positioning it for broader distribution.
Our newest FAST partner is Black Enterprise, a smaller brand about to re-launch its channel. As a newer entity, it may not score top tier distribution partners out of the gate but, by aiming for smaller platforms, where experimentation and iteration poses less risk, the Black Enterprise channel can build an audience, drive engagement and monetization, and position itself for more established platforms over time.
So while we can all agree that bigger is generally better, here are a few reasons why smaller platforms make sense for new and niche channels:
Easier Entry: Smaller FAST platforms offer easier placement opportunities for new channels, as Tier 1 platforms (like Roku, Samsung TV Plus, Pluto TV, and Tubi) are highly competitive and selective. Starting on smaller platforms allows new and niche channels to gain initial traction, learn audience preferences, and refine their content and operations without the high stakes of a major launch.
Audience Building: Smaller platforms act as a proving ground to cultivate a loyal niche audience. By experimenting with programming, channels can find their audience sweet spot, and work to accelerate growth. This also applies to advertising. Some larger platforms like Roku only accept a limited number of ads per hour but smaller platforms may enable more minutes per hour of ads, allowing channels to optimize their earning power.
Data Collection and Iteration: Insights on viewer engagement, content performance, and monetization strategies can be used to iterate and improve the channel’s offering before scaling up to platforms with larger audiences. That data can then be leveraged to demonstrate their value to larger platforms.
In summary, while bigger is better, starting on smaller FAST platforms can be a practical and strategic step for new and niche channels aiming to build an audience, refine their product, and eventually secure placement on major platforms like Roku and Samsung, where competition and expectations are significantly higher.
