Lifetime Launches Vertical Microdramas, Licenses 200 Titles — SkimNews
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- MyLifetime.com launched three original vertical films from Microhouse Films — "Tides of Temptation," "Matched With a Murderer," and "His Lies Taste Like Love" — with "Tides of Temptation" exec produced by Taye Diggs, Autumn Federici and Shelby Stone as a digital companion to the Nov. 7 Lifetime movie "Terry McMillan Presents: Paradise with You."
- The Lifetime mobile app will add new vertical titles every two weeks, targeting up to seven originals by year-end, two of them sponsored holiday-themed verticals from vertTV: "Casting Christmas" and "Destination, Christmas."
- A+E Global Media has adapted nearly 200 titles into vertical microdramas for third-party licensing timed to the MIPCOM market, drawing from franchises including "Cold Case Files," "I Survived," "Alone," "Ice Road Truckers," "Forged in Fire," "Hoarders" and "Married at First Sight."
- Seven Lifetime original films have been recut into vertical chapters for MyLifetime.com, including "A Lifeguard's Obsession," "Burned by Love," "Danger in the House," "My Husband's Worse Mistake" and "College Professor Obsession."
- Elaine Frontain Bryant, A+E Global Media's EVP and head of programming, framed microdramas as an opportunity to "define its role within the Lifetime ecosystem" rather than simply chase a new format.
- Toby Byrne, president of media solutions at A+E Global Media, positioned the vertical slate as a vehicle for brands to reach "mobile-first" audiences, signaling the ad-supported, sponsor-driven economics behind the expansion.
Why it matters: A+E/Lifetime is betting that vertical microdrama — the fastest-growing format in streaming — can extend a legacy cable brand onto mobile without diluting it, while monetizing a ~200-title back catalog through third-party licensing deals surfaced at MIPCOM. The biweekly cadence and sponsor-backed holiday titles show the unit economics lean on brand partnerships, not just subscription or ad revenue.
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