A new live TV streaming service from Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind former President Donald Trump’s social media platform Truth Social, is here — and investors seemed interested.
Trump Media announced Friday that it has begun the phased rollout of Truth+, a streaming platform that it said will initially include news, commentary, weather, lifestyle, and entertainment channels. Shares of Trump Media initially slide about 4% at market open on Friday, before rising more than 5%.
“First, we created Truth Social to provide a safe harbor for free speech on the Internet,” said Trump Media CEO Devin Nunes. “Now, we’re establishing a reliable home for great TV content that is neglected by the big corporations or is at risk of cancellation.”
Trump Media plans to continue to expand its offerings, including “news, Christian content, and family friendly content.” Viewers will be able to access Truth+ on the web, and it will then become available straight from the Truth Social app. Streaming content can be viewed as stand-alone channels or in a separate picture-in-picture window while using the social media platform, Trump Media said.
The company said it will have full control over its tech delivery stack for streaming across a private network content delivery network, “rendering the service uncancellable by Big Tech.” Trump Media first announced the streaming service in April.
Since debuting on the Nasdaq on March 26, after completing its merger with Digital World Acquisition Corp. (DWAC), a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, Trump Media stock has fallen more than 50%. Its shares were valued at $28.67 apiece as of Friday morning, bringing the company’s market capitalization to $5.62 billion.
The company’s stock has been branded a meme stock due to its extremely volatile trading patterns, with investors largely trading on sentiment rather than actual business performance. Shares of Trump Media surged more than 50% after an assassination attempt on the former president at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania last month.