Facebook, adding another media partner to its burgeoning video strategy, is working with Time Inc.‘s Fortune, which is launching a interview series with CEOs and other business bigwigs on the social-media giant’s service.
“The Chat,” Fortune’s new video show, is supposed to open the floor to any and all questions, styled after Reddit’s “Ask Me Anything” format. The series will contain advertising and/or sponsorships; at first, the video will include preroll ads, but only for segments hosting on Fortune.com.
The first edition of “The Chat” will launch Thursday, at Facebook’s headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., with an hourlong interview with GE chairman-CEO Jeff Immelt. Fortune senior editor-at-large Pattie Sellers will lead the interview in front of a live audience of Facebook employees, fielding questions from the in-person crowd and from those submitted by readers.
For Facebook, the partnership promises to further the expansion of video on its platform. The No. 1 social-media company, with more than 1 billion monthly active users, said it delivered 4 billion video views per day in the first quarter of 2015.
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Time Inc., too, is ramping up its video production and distribution, especially with content designed to be shared across social channels.
“One of the primary goals in our video strategy is to actively lead conversations and engage audiences,” said J.R. McCabe, Time Inc.’s SVP in charge of video. “Extending Fortune’s ‘The Chat’ to Facebook is a perfect example of how the plan comes to life in a fun and vibrant way.”
