Thirteen years after its creation, the wildly popular video-sharing platform is rolling out its first major original content series, “Cobra Kai” – a revival of the 1980s saga with a twist.
With the first 10-episode series going live online on May 2, Google-owned YouTube is also hoping to draw new customers to its $10-a-month streaming service, YouTube Red, which was launched in 2015.
YouTube Red is now available in five countries – the US, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and South Korea.” – but YouTube says it will reach dozens more by year’s end.
The portal – which now has 1.5 billion users – is hoping its forays into original content will help change the company’s economic model, which until now has been largely based on ads and homegrown viral video stars.
To do that, and also counter the rise of Netflix and Amazon, the company have looked to a known quantity.
“The Karate Kid,” released in 1984, led to three sequels, and even a reboot in 2010 starring Will Smith’s son Jaden. Overall, the films have taken in more than $500 million at the box office worldwide.
The star of the first film, Ralph Macchio, and the creative team behind such unhinged, raunchy comedies as the “Harold and Kumar” films and “Blockers,” are on board for “Cobra Kai.”
