The list of companies looking to create their own media content seems to be getting longer, as camera maker GoPro is making serious strides in that direction with the hire of former Hulu head of original series Charlotte Koh in a new position, head of features and series. Koh told Variety the company’s looking to work with established Hollywood players, initially for unscripted and documentary content, but perhaps for more down the road:

Koh is tasked with striking partnerships with Hollywood creatives as well as studios and networks to develop and co-produce new content with the help of GoPro’s signature small cameras. “It’s really about creating a GoPro content banner on top of the technology,” she told Variety in her first interview since joining the company last month.

Koh didn’t reveal too much about the types of content that will come out of these collaborations, in part because that work is still in a “seed-planting stage,” as she put it. The company’s efforts will initially focus on unscripted and documentary content, partly because it wants to test and iterate quickly on content production. “Making something unscripted is obviously faster,” Koh said, while adding that scripted content is still “within the realm of possibility” over time.

GoPro, which introduced a new model dubbed the GoPro Hero4 Session this week, has long been public about bigger media ambitions. The company has been distributing videos via YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and other social platforms for some time, and more recently has struck media partnerships with ESPN and NHL.

With these new efforts, GoPro could take distribution even further. Asked whether GoPro will try to co-produce shows or documentaries that will air on traditional TV networks, Koh replied: “That is definitely on the table.”

Those sports media partnerships are particularly notable, as they seem to be an excellent fit for both GoPro’s technology (small, helmet-mounted cameras) and brand ambitions (quick-turnaround, in-demand content with viral potential). The NHL started using GoPro cameras on certain players during games this year, and ESPN has done the same during the X Games. GoPro also already has a regular segment during each 60 Minutes Sports episode, too.

It might be interesting to see where Koh tries to take this next. What about adding GoPro footage from players’ helmets to documentary shows like HBO’s “Hard Knocks” or Epix’s “Road To The Winter Classic”? Or using GoPro footage from Olympic athletes as part of documentaries about them? There are plenty of possibilities here, and while there don’t seem to be too many specifics yet, sports would seem to be a natural area for GoPro to explore. Of course, the sports media marketplace is quite crowded at the moment, so there could be challenges ahead. GoPro’s showing they’re serious about creating more content, though, and their mix of technology, resources and connections could help them there. This will be worth keeping an eye on to see just what they come up with.

[Variety]

About Andrew Bucholtz

Andrew Bucholtz has been covering sports media for Awful Announcing since 2012. He is also a staff writer for The Comeback. His previous work includes time at Yahoo! Sports Canada and Black Press.