VUit to be Exclusive Free Streaming Home for Iconic Iditarod Sled Dog Race
Special Iditarod Channel Featuring Highlights from Previous Races to Launch Today in the Lead-Up to March 7th 2021 Race Kick-Off
VUit, (pronounced “view it”), a free, ad-supported national streaming service aiming to be the “Netflix of Live, Local, and Free,” announced today it will be the exclusive streaming home for the Iditarod Sled Dog race and only place where viewers outside of Alaska will be able to watch the race in full for free. VUit partner station Gray Television-owned KTUU in Anchorage, Alaska, in collaboration with Iditarod.com will be on the ground producing the full race for the streaming service, kicking off on March 7th in Willow, Alaska. The teams head to the historic gold-rush town of Iditarod, then return to Willow, with the winner expected to cross the finish line March 15th. Prior to the kick-off, there will be a pre-race show featuring musher profiles and other exciting aspects of the race. VUit is debuting today a dedicated Iditarod channel, where fans can relive moments from previous races in the lead up to this year’s kick-off.
The Iditarod is an annual long-distance race that begins in Anchorage, Alaska. Mushers and their sixteen-dog teams travel 1,000 miles, with over fifty teams from around the world competing. This year, because of the Pandemic, the race was shortened slightly to 852 miles with 47 mushers registered. KTUU will have in-field reporters and cameras capturing every exciting moment of the race for viewers at home.
“This year’s Iditarod is a bit different due to the pandemic,” said Nancy Johnson, General Manager of KTUU, adding “but there are always incredible stories to tell of the mushers and canine athletes and the challenges of the trail through Alaska’s rugged wilderness. We’re excited to share all of our coverage on VUit!”
Jack Perry, founder and CEO of Syncbak, VUit’s parent company, said, “The Iditarod is exactly the kind of event we wanted to bring to viewers through VUit. It’s one of those exciting, hyperlocal sports competitions that fans outside of the local community rarely have the opportunity to watch. Through our platform, and our local partner KTUU’s fine work on the ground, viewers in the U.S., and even beyond will have the opportunity to enjoy every twist and turn of this exciting race.”
Doubling down on the power and potential appeal of hyperlocal live content to a national audience, VUit carries more than 200 local TV channels along with a range of themed curated feature channels across politics, sports, food, business, entertainment and culture. Overall, VUit expects to stream more than 3 million hours of live programming annually, featuring a wide range of local, regional and special interest programming produced by leading television stations from across the country, along with thousands of “VUit Originals.” Since its launch, many of VUit’s hyperlocal content have attracted viewers from across 100s of US DMAs.
VUit is now available on all major streaming platforms and devices, including mobile and desktop web, iOS and Android devices, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, AppleTV, and more.