Truth Social, the social media platform owned by Donald Trump’s media company, has announced plans to launch a live TV streaming platform. The platform will focus on “news networks” and “religious channels,” along with “other content that has been cancelled, is at risk of cancellation, or is being suppressed on other platforms and services,” according to a press release. The service will also feature “family-friendly” content, including films and documentaries.
The streaming service will launch in three phases. The company first plans to introduce Truth Social’s CDN (content delivery network) for streaming to the Truth Social app for Android, iOS and the web. Next, Truth Social plans to release over-the-top (“OTT”) streaming apps for phones, tablets and other devices. The last phase of the rollout involves the launch of a streaming app for TVs.
The Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG) says it has tested the streaming service on its web and iOS platforms for six months and has “finished the research and development phase.”
“We’re excited to move forward with the next big phase for Truth Social,” said TMTG CEO Devin Nunes in the press release. “With our streaming content, we aim to provide a permanent home for high-quality news and entertainment that face discrimination by other channels and content delivery services.”
The announcement comes as Elon Musk’s X has been focused on trying to turn the social media site into a free-speech “video-first” platform. The social network currently features an original show hosted by former congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard and another by former Fox Sports host Jim Rome. Last month, Musk canceled a talkshow deal with former CNN anchor Don Lemon after the multibillionaire was interviewed for the first episode of the show.
Truth Social went public last month after shareholders approved a merger of TMTG and Digital World Acquisition, a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The company’s stock slumped this week after it said it would sell more shares to raise cash. Although the company is worth billions of dollars, TMTG is struggling to make money: It reportedly had a net loss of around $49 million in 2023 and made just under $4 million in revenue.
Appfigures tells TechCrunch that Truth Social has been downloaded close to seven million times across the iOS App Store and Google Play combined.
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