CNN has officially launched its U.S. weather app on Tuesday. The app combines expert analysis with a user’s local data and forecasts.
What We Know: The CNN Weather app is currently free. However, the company may eventually place the content behind a paywall in its All Access tier, according to a report from Axios. The app is built in partnership with Amazon’s AWS.
What They Said: “We are creating this portfolio of lifestyle products to help our audience navigate a complex world. CNN Weather will not only prepare people each morning for the day ahead and keep them safe and informed during severe weather events, it will also help our audience appreciate and understand the natural weather phenomena around them.” -CNN SVP of New Business Ben French
What It Means: CNN’s weather app launch comes nearly one full year to the day of the announcement that it would debut the product. It marks the first lifestyle product introduced by the company since CEO Mark Thompson shared the vision of its digital strategy. The network isn’t the first to launch a standalone weather app. Fox Weather is both an app and a television network from the cable news giant Fox News. It debuted on television in 2021. That platform launched a premium, ad-free subscription membership last year.
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
