President Obama is set to deliver his State of the Union Address Tuesday, Jan. 12 at 9 pm EST. But you’ll have more viewing options this year. White House Chief Digital Officer Jason Goldman announced in a Medium post The White House will allow Amazon Video to provide a free, on-demand stream of President Obama’s final State of the Union Address. Starting Wednesday , Obama’s annual speech will be available to watch across platforms,via smartphone, tablet, or laptop, using Amazon’s apps and website. Also watch the State of the Union live, at no cost, on The White House YouTube channel or website .
“So, for those who’ve cut the cord from cable and network TV: Whether you use a smart TV, web browser, mobile device, or tablet there’s a way for you to watch the President’s speech as it happens and on-demand,” Goldman wrote on Medium.
Amazon has also made all seven of President Obama’s past State of the Union speeches available to stream . As services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon continue to grow in popularity, the White House believes the stream could reach viewers that may not watch otherwise.
The White House has been trying to keep up with trends in how people watch and consume media. In fact, the first HD broadcast of the SOTU was under President George W. Bush in 2004. President Obama delivered the first “enhanced” live stream in 2011. If you remember, the enhanced version includes statistics, pie charts, special slides and multimedia.
“America’s media landscape is more diverse than ever before. We’re seven years out from President Obama’s first address to a joint session of Congress in 2009 — when the phrase “two-screen experience” would have made no sense, “binge-watching” wasn’t yet a thing, and the White House had yet to publish a tweet,” Goldman said.
In an effort to engage viewers during the speech, the White House is planning on amping up this year’s social media efforts.
“And as in past years, you’ll be able to watch video excerpts released in real-time on Facebook and Twitter . From live GIFs on Tumblr to 6-second videos on Vine and photos on Instagram , we’ll build on previous efforts to connect with users across a range of social media sites,” he added.
Curious to know what Obama will talk about in his last official SOTU? Take a look at the preview below:
