Conde Nast Unveils The Scene, New Digital Video Platform

In the realms of high fashion, food and culture, Condé Nast is considered the consummate insider. When it comes to new media, however, the publisher is assuming the role of disruptive rebel.
 
“Condé Nast is the insurgent," Dawn Ostroff, president of Condé Nast Entertainment, told media buyers and industry types gathered for the company’s NewFront presentation on Tuesday.
 
Embodying this disruptive pose, CNÉ unveiled The Scene -- a new platform for curating digital-first video content.
 
With The Scene, which is expected to go live in July, Condé Nast is getting into the business of video aggregation. Along with its own content, the platform will feature video from various launch partners, including ABC News, Buzzfeed, Major League Soccer, Variety and Weather Channel Films.
 
While talking up The Scene on Tuesday, Fred Santarpia, chief digital officer at CNÉ, took the opportunity to indirectly dis established video aggregators.  
 
Seeming to take jabs at Hulu and YouTube, Santarpia stated: “The Scene will be a place where new digital series will get first billing and won’t get buried beneath an avalanche of prime-time television and user uploaded content.”

Boasting nearly 1 billion views to date, CNÉ launched its digital video network in March 2013 with GQ and Glamour channels. The Condé Nast unit has distribution partnerships with AOL, Yahoo, YouTube, Twitter, and Dailymotion, among others.

Along with The Scene, CNÉ on Tuesday unveiled new branded channels for Bon Appétit, The New Yorker and Lucky, and the production of over 100 new and returning digital series across all channels.
 
Newly unveiled projects included a documentary series for Vanity Fair entitled “@VF Scandal”; Vogue’s “73 Questions,” featuring various personalities answering 73 questions; and a tech-focused comic series for Wired dubbed “Retro Grade.”
 
Allure is getting “Cassandra To The Rescue,” which features YouTube star Cassandra Bankson and her attempts to help women overcome their insecurities.
 
Food focused shows include Bon Appétit’s “I Effed It Up,” staring senior food editor Dawn Perry, and “1 Item 3 Ways” for Epicurious, which will focus on seasonal food items, and three ways to reinvent them.
 
Glamour, meanwhile, is getting “30 Things,” a new series produced by Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos, which presents the must-haves and “must-knows” for women around the age of 30; and the return of “Glamour Documentaries.”
 
For Golf Digest, CNÉ is developing a hidden-camera comedy series named “Shanked,” and the animated series, “Hungover Caddy.”
 
GQ is also getting an animated series, dubbed “45 Second Man” and “Most Expensivest Sh*t,” which will highlight the most outrageously decadent toys of the rich and famous.
 
Additional projects include Self’s “Rachel’s Rules,” featuring nutrition expert Rachel Beller; Style.com’s “In The Mood For,” featuring fashion blogger Leandra Medine; and Teen Vogue’s “Bryanboy Goes To College,” featuring fashion blogger Bryanboy.

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