NBC Starts Streaming With a TV-Style Platform, Peacock

NBC Starts Streaming With a TV-Style Platform, Peacock

The service will challenge Netflix with a digital version of channel-surfing and lots of what one executive calls "comfort-food TV.“

Nick Mohammed, left, and the "Friends“ alumnus David Schwimmer star in "Intelligence," a series on the new streaming service Peacock.Credit...Sky Uk/Peacock, via Associated Press

July 13, 2020Updated 6:29 p.m. ET

NBCUniversal's streaming platform, Peacock, looks a whole lot like broadcast TV.

The free version comes with commercials and plenty of vintage hits like "The King of Queens“ and "Everybody Loves Raymond.“ And it offers something viewers might have missed while they were logged onto other streamers: the ability to channel-surf.

The service said it has brought back the analog-era pastime by grouping its programming into distinct feeds, with one dedicated to NBC's late night hosts and another for the network's morning franchise, "Today,“ among others.

Peacock, which becomes widely available Wednesday, is also trying to distinguish itself from Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max and other competitors by betting that viewers want a free or low-cost streaming option during the coronavirus pandemic.

"People are looking for more affordable options,“ said Matt Strauss, chairman of Peacock and NBCUniversal Digital Enterprises. "That was true before the pandemic and now that we are in the middle of it, arguably heading toward a