CBS puts ‘Limitless’ pilot online for CBS All Access users

With the official start of the fall TV season coming on Monday, networks are still thinking of how they are going to be able to draw attention to their upcoming shows. For NBC, they have plastered advertisements of “Blindspot” almost everywhere. Fox is relying in many ways on franchises like “Minority Report,” and with “Limitless,” CBS is doing something similar. We’re not sure that there were too many people necessarily clamoring for a TV version of the Bradley Cooper film, but there are reasons to be excited about it.

CBS is also doing one other thing right now to promote their show in a different way than we are seeing elsewhere: They have placed the pilot for “Limitless” online for viewers to watch through their CBS All Access streaming service. It’s a move to save you a little time on Thursday night, and for you to see if you want to watch the show on a weekly basis.

Is there a little bit of a risk that giving people your episode early will reduce live ratings? Sure, but we feel like it is a really small risk. Thanks to “Big Brother” there are probably more people using the All Access service than ever before, but we’re not sure that many of them are going to be thinking of checking this out right away. Even when networks place shows online for viewers to watch for free, it really doesn’t make much of an imprint. This is something that NBC tried when putting all of “Aquarius” online before the premiere, but it was revealed that only a tiny percentage of viewers actually watched it through this format.

“Limitless” will premiere for everyone to enjoy on Tuesday night, and we will have more news on it soon enough.

For now, head over here to get some other TV news on everything we cover sent right to you via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: CBS.)