Vimeo joins parade of Net video sites betting on original content

Vimeo is joining the stream of online video sites committing to original content.

After more than a decade as more of a private video sharing service, Vimeo has announced its first slate of original programming, which includes a series, a short film and a stand-up comedy special. "We're championing a new type of programming that is ... a cut above in terms of the writing, filming and narrative quality and is delivered to an audience in a premium, no advertising, direct paid model," said CEO Kerry Trainor.

Vimeo's slate includes the second series of The Outs, from actor/writer/executive producer Adam Goldman, which revolves around a group of young gay men in New York. The first episodes, which can be viewed free on Vimeo, began airing in 2012 and won over critics. This new season will be paid video on demand when it lands on Vimeo in early 2016.

Also in the works: Darby Forever, a short film from Saturday Night Live's Aidy Bryant. In the 20-minute piece, also due early next year, Bryant plays a fabric store clerk who encounters characters played by Natasha Lyonne (Orange is the New Black) and Retta (Parks and Recreation).

Coming in December: Bianca Del Rio’s Rolodex of Hate: Live from Austin, an hourlong stand-up comedy special starring the Rupaul's Drag Race season six winner.

Since its arrival in 2004, Vimeo attracted more than 635,000 paying subscribers that would upload and share videos, as well as make use of its video tools, Trainor says. Two years ago, Vimeo On Demand launched as a way to sell video directly to viewers.

The near-insatiable appetite for Net-delivered video, or so-called over-the-top (OTT) video, in the U.S. is expected to grow from 173 million in 2014 to 181 million this year— and about 200 million in 2019, eMarketer estimates.

Vimeo began truly dabbling in direct-to-consumer OTT video with its first original series High Maintenance, which has aired over the last three years on the service. Earlier this year, the series was picked up by HBO for six new episodes. "We've built the largest open VOD marketplace in the world and from that we have also now started investing in our own programing," Trainor said.

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