Fox is setting the full run of “The Masked Singer” free.
Just days afterFox Corp. clinched its acquisition of free-streaming platformTubi, it’s putting the division to work to monetize its biggest hit. All episodes of “The Masked Singer” seasons 1 and 2, and the first 11 episodes from the current season 3, will be available on Tubi’s ad-supported VOD service beginning Thursday, April 3, at 5 p.m. PT.
“The Masked Singer” — in which lavishly disguised celebrity vocalists compete for votes, revealing their identity when they get booted from the competition (or win) — is emceed by Nick Cannon with panelists Jenny McCarthy, Nicole Scherzinger, Ken Jeong and Robin Thicke. The singing-competition show has been aratings powerhouse for Fox, averaging a 3.3 Live + 7 Day rating and 15 million viewers across all platforms.
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Going forward, new “Masked Singer” season 3 eps will be available on Tubi at least a week after they air on Fox, according to a Tubi rep. Like other Fox shows, “Masked Singer” is available the day after linear on Hulu and on pay-TV partners’ VOD platforms.
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Fox currently provides all “Masked Singer” season 2-3 episodes (except for the S2 premiere episode) on fox.com and the Fox Now app — however, those are available only to subscribers of participating pay-TV affiliates including Comcast Xfinity, DirecTV, Dish Network and Charter’s Spectrum.
“We are thrilled to make ‘The Masked Singer’ available to an even wider audience through Tubi,” said Rob Wade, president of alternative entertainment and specials at Fox Entertainment. The franchise is “an important piece of our growing stable of owned [intellectual property] and this deal is a prime example of our strategy to identify meaningful opportunities for, and build the value of, our content.”
According to Tubi chief content officer Adam Lewinson, the free-streaming launch of “The Masked Singer” is the “first of many” new initiatives Tubi is developing with its new parent company.
Last monthFox Corp. announced an agreement to buy Tubi for $440 million in cash, and officially closed the deal on April 20. The broadcaster says it plans to operate Tubi as an independent unit. The pact was the latest in an M&A trend in the free-streaming space: ViacomCBSowns Pluto TV, and Comcast this year boughtXumo.
Tubi says it had25 million monthly active users as of the end of 2019. The service provides over 20,000 movies and TV shows, all free to watch with ads, from major Hollywood studios. It’s available on the web; Android and iOS mobile devices; OTT devices such as Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Chromecast, Android TV; Vizio, Sony and Samsung smart TVs; and Xbox One and PlayStation 4.
“The Masked Singer,” produced by Fox Alternative Entertainment, is based on the South Korean format created by Mun Hwa Broadcasting. The U.S. version was developed and is executive-produced by Smart Dog Media’s Craig Plestis. Izzie Pick Ibarra serves as showrunner and executive producer, and Nick Cannon and Rosie Seitchik also serve as executive producers. Deena Katz serves as co-executive producer and Alex Rudzinski directs.
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