Hub Network has entered the mobile age. The network today will announce its first app, loaded with complete eps of Hub shows including My Little Pony, Littlest Pet Shop and Transformers Prime, plus short-form content, games and activities like a photo booth feature where users can get “photo-bombed” by their favorite Hub character. It’s free in the iTunes App Store, and the launch dovetails with the net’s newly enhanced website, renamed HubNetwork.com.
The site now sports a tablet-friendly responsive design and new features like the “Family Hub,” a customizable area where families can submit artwork, photos and videos that may just find their way on TV. The My Codes section on the app will rotate TV content monthly and enables user to unlock stickers online to use in the app photo booth. It’s all about cross-platform connectedness, says CMO Dena Kaplan, and generating 360-degree fun and engagement.
In-house research showing kids want ease of use but also unexpected elements led to the creation of “fun little buttons–gems of surprise and delight” on the app, Kendall Doty, Hub exec director of digital content and cross-platform entertainment, tells CynKids. “You can shake the tablet and it will randomize. And if you just want to go in and watch a show, that’s easy to do, too.”
Although the network’s previous site began running ads in Q1 2013, sponsorship opportunities are greatly expanded on the new site, Kaplan says. The app is not currently not ad-supported. “We really want it to keep it ad-free at this point to get kids and parents engaged with it. Down the road as we add more to the app-like more native games–we may make more off-channel investment,” she says.
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