NBC officially launches NBC News Now and it is completely free

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NBC’s newest news streaming venture, NBC News Now, officially launched last Wednesday. That brings NBC’s news reporting to a new group of viewers – those who might not subscribe to cable or prefer to watch their news online.

NBC News Now is free

Unlike the competition, like Fox News’ Fox Nation, NBC News Now is free, paid for by advertising and sponsorship from Citigroup Inc. It also won’t need you to sign in with your cable credentials, unlike most apps from network TV providers.

• At the start, the news streaming service will run Monday through Friday, 3 pm ET to 11 pm ET
• The service will feature minutes-long news updates called Briefly’s
• Longer, in-depth reports will also feature on the new service, which will expand on some of the stories TV viewers might see on Today or NBC Nightly News
• The new service has already been streaming throughout May on an irregular schedule
• It can be accessed at NBCNews.com/now, on the NBC News mobile app for Android or iOS, or the NBC News apps on Apple TV, Android TV, Roku, and Amazon Fire TV

Rashida Jones, senior vice president of specials for NBC News and MSNBC, told Variety:

We want to be the premiere place for viewers who are news junkies – news savvy, digitally savvy, but may not be watching on traditional platforms or have access to cable service

Ah, so it’s NBC’s version of KnowTechie. Cool.

What do you think? Interested in the new service or is this yet another streaming service you don’t care about? Let us know down below in the comments or carry the discussion over to our Twitter or Facebook.

Editors’ Recommendations:

• Amazon and Google finally squash their streaming beef
• If you’re in the UK, Netflix will soon be up to 20-percent more expensive
• It’s been over two years, why doesn’t the Nintendo Switch have a Netflix app?
• Mozilla’s Firefox browser is getting a much-needed speed update

Joe Rice-Jones

Maker, meme-r, and unabashed geek with nearly half a decade of blogging experience at KnowTechie, SlashGear and XDA Developers. If it runs on electricity (or even if it doesn't), Joe probably has one around his office somewhere, with particular focus in gadgetry and handheld gaming. Shoot him an email at joe@knowtechie.com.