DirecTV has gone live with its first original series, Rogue.  It premiered on the satellite provider’s in-house, non ad-supported Audience (News - Alert) Network, which is typically populated with library shows. The operator has a 50 percent stake in the series.

Launching original series has become the hallmark of the over-the-top (OTT) crew, as in Netflix’s launch of House of Cards and Arrested Development. Satellite, IPTV and cable providers traditionally act as aggregators of others’ content, rather than providing competing content elements themselves. But DirecTV (News - Alert) is pioneering the idea of a traditional pay-TV operator adopting such a gambit, geared to act as a differentiator and lure subscribers.

“There are no more Damages and Friday Night Lights out there,” said Chris Long, senior vice president of DirecTV, speaking to Variety. “You can’t live on that the rest of your life, waiting for someone else to stop enjoying a piece of content and then to sell it to you. So here’s an opportunity for us to put our foot in the water, but not too much financially, and share the cost to differentiate (our) content so customers feel like, ‘OK, here’s another reason why I should stay on DirecTV.’”

To go with the launch, the company has launched a fan site, Roguemedia.tv, which provides a behind-the-scenes look at the drama series, which follows a female undercover detective who joins the Mob. It also offers exclusive photo galleries, cast and crew bios, full episodes and promotional materials.