AwesomenessTV Jumps To TV With Half-Hour Nickelodeon Series

When Dreamworks Animation acquired multi-channel YouTube network AwesomenessTV for $33 million back in May, it was unclear how the studio planned to turn its big investment into a profitable one. Now, a plan is coming  to light. Starting on July 1, AwesomenessTV will debut on Nickelodeon, where new and pre-existing network material will be woven together to form a half-hour show described as a “rapid-fire sketch comedy series.”

While AwesomenessTV will still publish its content predominantly on YouTube, the show will include some original spots featuring the network’s creators. In addition, Awesomeness is leveraging its massive network (which currently includes more than 72,000 channels) to provide clips worthy of the small screen. This combination suggests that the TV program (also titled AwesomenessTV) will be like a teen version of Tosh.0: plenty of clip show elements, some segments to keep the audience on its toes, and a fast-paced delivery.

“The long-term goal is to build audience and own eyeballs over time,” said AwesomenessTV CEO Brian Robbins, “it might take a little time for [YouTube] ad revenue to catch up. But an eyeball is an eyeball is an eyeball — no matter where it is, on TV or online.” Robbins also has a lot of young eyeballs glued to his YouTube network. If he can add a similarly large TV audience, look for Awesomeness to hit its large, performance-based incentives with ease.