Snapchat is making a push into entertainment content with Discover, a new feature launched Tuesday in partnership with media brands such as ESPN and Food Network.
Discover features a daily edition of five to 10 videos curated by Snapchat’s media partners. At launch, Snapchat has introduced 11 Discover channels, including CNN, Comedy Central, Cosmopolitan, National Geographic and Vice. There is also a Snapchat channel that will feature content selected by its in-house editorial team. The ad-supported channels, updated every 24 hours, provide a digest of sorts about that brand’s top stories.
The company, which started as a service for sending disappearing photo messages, has placed an emphasis on expanding beyond its initial conceit. Last year it introduced Stories, which lets users create a compilation of photos and videos that disappear after a 24-hour period, and later announced expanded feature Our Stories, which allows people at large events like Coachella to upload Snaps into a collaborative Story.
In a blog post announcing Discover, Snapchat said the new feature isn’t about social network. “It’s the result of collaboration with world-class leaders in media to build a storytelling format that puts the narrative first,” the post reads. “Social media companies tell us what to read based on what’s most recent or most popular. … We count on editors and artists, not clicks and shares, to determine what’s important.”
