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Quibi confirms you'll start getting support to cast to TVs next month

Quibi launched as a mobile-only streaming service with star-packed shows, but almost immediately users complained you couldn't watch on TVs.

Joan E. Solsman Former Senior Reporter
Joan E. Solsman was CNET's senior media reporter, covering the intersection of entertainment and technology. She's reported from locations spanning from Disneyland to Serbian refugee camps, and she previously wrote for Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal. She bikes to get almost everywhere and has been doored only once.
Expertise Streaming video, film, television and music; virtual, augmented and mixed reality; deep fakes and synthetic media; content moderation and misinformation online Credentials
  • Three Folio Eddie award wins: 2018 science & technology writing (Cartoon bunnies are hacking your brain), 2021 analysis (Deepfakes' election threat isn't what you'd think) and 2022 culture article (Apple's CODA Takes You Into an Inner World of Sign)
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Joan E. Solsman
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Idris Elba stars in a Quibi reality show pitting him against rally driver Ken Block in outrageous car stunts. 

 Quibi

Quibi, a star-studded mobile streaming service for short-form video, confirmed it'll be broadening its horizons to televisions next month. Quibi, which launched about two weeks ago, said Wednesday that some users will get the ability to cast the service from mobile phones to their TVs starting in May. 

Quibi also said its app has been downloaded 2.7 million times since it launched April 6. That's an additional million downloads after it racked up 1.7 million in its first week. The service is offering a 90-day free trial if you sign up before May. 

Reuters first reported the news. 

Quibi said its most-watched show so far is Most Dangerous Game, a thriller reimagining the classic short story starring The Hunger Games' Liam Hemsworth. 

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Rounding out Quibi's most popular shows were: 

  • Chrissy's Court, a courtroom reality show in the style of Judge Judy (but starring Chrissy Teigen); 
  • Flipped, a comedy about a married couple who uncovers a cash horde left by a Mexican drug cartel in the house they're renovating in the hope of become reality-TV stars; 
  • Punk'd, a reboot of the MTV prank show hosted by Chance the Rapper; 
  • and Survive, a drama about a suicidal woman who finds a new will to live after surviving a plane crash, starring Game of Thrones' Sophie Turner.

Quibi, which costs $5 a month with ads and $8 a month without, ramped up in the middle of a parade of new streaming services, as both tech and media giants rush to define the future of video. It's competing for your loyalty against upstarts like Disney Plus, Apple TV Plus, Peacock and HBO Max, as well as established players like Netflix, too. And, of course, Quibi faces a Goliath in YouTube, the short-video specialist that's already drawing in more than 2 billion viewers every month. 

Quibi believes its unconventional strategy -- very expensive, star-packed programming released in 10-minute-or-less episodes that you watch on phones or mobile devices -- will set it apart from the crowd.