Verizon Media Takes Shopping, Documentary and News to 5G

Verizon Media showed off a new home shopping show that will take advantage of new 5G technology to let users try on products before they buy them.

Hypezilla, the shopping show, was one of several new shows presented by Verizon at its NewFront on Tuesday.

Hypezilla will be available via Yahoo Play and uses augmented reality technology to show off hot products in categories including tech and clothing. The show is produced by Verizon Media’s RYOT 5G Studio.

Related: Verizon Offers Subscribers Access to YouTube TV

RYOT is also presenting a feature-length documentary called 5B, which looks at the heroic nurses who cared for the first wave of HIV/AIDS patients in San Francisco. Verizon Media said it will distribute and support the theatrical premiere of 5B with immersive content experiences.

The shows illustrate Verizon’s strategy of trying to combine connectivity, data and premium content.

“We’re more focused than ever on transforming powerful intentions into real connections, performance and quality through data insights and content, deepening the connection between brands and consumers,” said K. Guru Gowrappan, Verizon Media CEO. “From unparalleled stories like 5B, to innovations like Hypezilla, to the physical manifestation of our recent growth in our global studio spaces - we’re bringing our consumers the best content, technology and immersive experiences - all in one place, and in a meaningful way.”

Related: Condé Nast Creates Prime Package of Digital Video

Verizon’s Yahoo Sports will be expanding its NFL streaming rights into the Yahoo Fantasy Football mobile app, where fans can watch local and primetime games for free.

The company will also be creating XR news programming for 5G with USA Today, Reuters, The Associated Press, Time and NowThis.

Verizon Media said Yahoo Lifestyle’s NowWith Network, which focuses on celebrity brands, is working with Sofia Vergara and her son Manolo to launch an exclusive line of swim and resort apparel called the Wet Line.

“Through innovation and scale, Verizon Media is connecting brands and consumers in unique and meaningful ways," said Jeff Lucas, head of North American sales and global client solutions."We're driving performance and quality through data insights, creating an ecosystem that spans content, commerce, search and social, and providing access to the industry's most premium solutions built for brand safety and control."

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.