The new CBS App for iPhone and iPad users will stream full episodes of the network's programming from primetime, daytime and late night. Streaming apps for all major mobile and tablet platforms, including Android and Windows 8, will be released later this year.
Daytime and late night programming will be available within 24 hours after the initial airing, while most primetime programs will be available on the eighth day after broadcast, CBS announced.
"We have been methodically and strategically finding new ways to satiate the appetite for our content on new platforms, while tapping into the tremendous revenue provided by doing so," Leslie Moonves, President and CEO of CBS Corporation, said. "Our announcement today achieves both of these objectives, while protecting our very healthy current ecosystem. In addition, by making our shows available on all the leading mobile devices out there, we are confident we will bring a whole new set of viewers to the CBS Television Network and build upon our standing as the number 1 network in the business."
Among CBS' most popular shows are The Late Show with David Letterman, NCIS, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and How I Met Your Mother. Watching them through the app will be an enhanced experience, according to CBS, which has partnered with Buick for the launch to limit commercial interruption for the first few weeks. CBS reports its website has led all other broadcast networks in terms of unique viewers for 51 consecutive months, according to comScore Video Metrix data from February.
"Our online viewers not only want to watch their favorite shows on multiple devices, they want deeper engagement with the programs they love," said Jim Lanzone, president of CBS Interactive. "The new CBS App gives them the best of both worlds, letting people watch CBS shows on the best screen available for them, with a host of extra features that give them a richer viewing experience whenever and wherever they tune in."
The CBS App can be downloaded from the App store.
