How Vice's new cable network plans to revolutionize TV and bring back millennials

A+E has handed over a low-rated cable network. If Vice can improve on H2's numbers, great! As BTIG analyst Rich Greenfield told THR, "In success, they create something far more meaningful than H2. And at worst, they revert to an H2 strategy in two years."

Smith knows that his target audience is shrinking on traditional TV. A recent Pew Research Center study found that 19% of 18-to-29-year-olds are cord cutters (they've dropped cable or satellite TV subscriptions), while another 16% have never even signed up for a traditional pay TV package. And as that group continues to move from TV to other platforms, Vice is waiting. "Guess what? I'm in online," Smith told THR. "I'm in mobile!"

"We saw an opening, and for us it's about brands that will survive regardless of the platform," A+E Networks CEO Nancy Dubuc said, "and Vice is the Holy Grail."

In a unique deal, A+E has asked Nielsen not to measure ratings for Viceland for its first six months. That would allow Viceland some time to transition its millennial following to the channel.

"We know how and where this younger audience is watching, and it's on mobile, on tablets, on laptops," Dubuc said. "Until Nielsen can measure a complete TV audi­ence on every platform, I can't expose this brand to undue criticism."

With DVRs and streaming sites, commercials have become less effective. While MTV airs about 18 minutes of commercials per hour, Viceland is aiming for 10. Later, it hopes to replace those ads with "more lucrative" sponsored content.

Watch a teaser for Viceland below:

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