Inside Zoeys Extraordinary Playlists Streaming Strategy [Video]

But even as it leans into its strengths as a linear network, NBC is increasingly looking to digital platforms as it tries to help its new shows find a larger audience—most notably with the unusual rollout for midseason musical drama Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist.

The show stars Jane Levy as a San Francisco computer coder who suddenly begins to hear the people around her sharing their most private thoughts and feelings by singing popular songs (like The Partridge Family’s “I Think I Love You,” Jonas Brothers’ “Sucker,” Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)” and The Beatles’ “Help!”) that only she can hear.

NBC gave Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist a linear “preview” more than a month ago, on Jan. 7, but isn’t airing the show’s second episode until Sunday night. In the interim, it has been streaming the premiere for free on nearly two dozen digital platforms in an …