Don’t have Showtime, but deperately want to catch Kirstie Alley making all sorts of jokes about how fat she is? Don’t worry. The premium cable network has made an innovative deal with Yahoo to stream the premiere of Alley’s new comedy series “Fat Actress.”
Showtime will premiere “Fat Actress” on Monday, March 7 at 10 p.m. ET. At the same time, Yahoo will make the episode, featuring the Emmy-winning actress kvetching about her weight and how difficult it is for her to find love and employment, available via streaming video. The episode will remain available to Yahoo users through March 12.
“We are always looking for aggressive new ways to promote our shows, generate buzz and provide an opportunity for sampling, and Yahoo! is the perfect vehicle to spread the word and expose this great series to a whole new audience beyond Showtime,” says Showtime’s Entertainment President Robert Greenblatt.
In addition to streaming the first episode, Yahoo is also pacting with Showtime to make all sorts of “Fat Actress” promotional materials available in the weeks leading up to the premiere, including photos and video clips.
“We could not be more pleased to be associated with Showtime’s high quality programming and are delighted to give our users the ability to be one of the first to check out this much discussed new show,” stated Doug Hirsch, general manager of Yahoo! Entertainment. “We look forward to working with Showtime to continue bringing exciting and unique content to our audiences.”
The idea of streaming a series premiere on the Internet isn’t an entirely new gambit. America Online made the first episode of The WB’s “Jack & Bobby” available to subscribers, a move which doesn’t appear to have turned the critically acclaimed drama into a hit.
Showtime is also in business with Monster.com to promote the “Fat Actress” debut, while Showtime is using iVillage.com to tease the second season of “The L Word.”
Credit: Zap2It.com
