Online television viewing is booming (for already-established TV suppliers that is), and the CW is looking to grow business there via its Seed app, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.

The Seed digital channel was launched three years ago as a development outlet for short-form Internet content that could then transition to broadcast. But with linear TV looking more like a lumbering dinosaur with each passing day, the CW is repositioning Seed as a second network of its own within the digital space, mixing the short Web-based fare it was already doing with more conventional shows like Fox’s decade-old-but-still-beloved teen dramedy The O.C.

Beefing up Seed allows the CW to push viewership into realms beyond the TV screen while tapping into a youth audience that increasingly prefers to consume its content on mobile devices. In today’s shifting landscape, the median age of CW’s traditional TV audience has risen to 42, while the median age for Seed is only 23. With only about 10 total hours of linear programming on its schedule – far fewer than that of the main broadcasters – the CW also seeks a place to showcase more content in a crowded landscape.

“Any opportunity they can create to continue building loyal audiences and continue bringing fans back to the CW property on their downtime can’t be a bad thing,” said Darcy Bowe, a VP at Starcom USA.

With its Web shorts on Seed building off established properties such as Veronica Mars, Seed might also be a powerful marketing tool, driving interest toward the bigger series airing back on traditional broadcast.

“We kind of built this ecosystem that first works for Seed, then moves back up on social — giving us something to talk about — that pushes us to the premiere,” said Rick Haskins, EVP of marketing and digital programs for the CW.

At the time of this writing, the Seed app has been downloaded nearly 300,000 times since launching in May.

Read more at the Los Angeles Times.

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