NewsON Momentum Builds Since Launch

Milestones Include Product Enhancements, Investor and Station Expansion, Advertising Platform Activation and Award Win

ATLANTA, June 9, 2016 – NewsON, a venture dedicated to distributing local news nationwide across multiple platforms, today announced significant growth and expansion since the launch of the NewsON app in late 2015.

Among the milestones achieved during the past six months are:

  • Product Enhancements: NewsON has made a series of enhancements to its Android phone and tablet apps, iPhone and iPad apps, and its channel on Roku players and TVs. These updates improved the discoverability of local stations and provided consumers with more content choices with the addition of new categories, such as entertainment, education, parenting and sports.
  • Investor Expansion: NewsON increased to a total of seven strategic investors.
  • Additional Stations: NewsON increased to 138 active participating stations, and will grow to a total of over 150 in summer 2016.
  • Market Growth: NewsON increased availability to 97 markets including 46 of the top 50, and will surpass 100 total markets in summer 2016.
  • Increased Population Coverage: NewsON increased its U.S. population coverage to 78 percent and will reach over 80 percent in summer 2016.
  • Advertising Platform Launch: NewsON has activated its advertising platform, enabling advertisers to serve ad units via the NewsON mobile app as well as the NewsON channel on Roku connected televisions. The platform serves an attractive user base of engaged digital video viewers, and enables brands to reach consumers who choose to watch their news broadcast from trusted local stations on-demand, on mobile and connected TV devices.
  • Award Recognition: NewsON was named Best Appin the 2016 Consumer World Awards, which honors excellence in every facet of the consumer industry including products, people behind the successes and best companies.

“Since we announced the formation of NewsON a year ago today, we have become an invaluable service for audiences across the nation,” said Louis Gump, CEO of NewsON. “So many accomplishments, including committed participation from over 150 TV stations in 100 markets covering 80 percent of the US population, rapid viewer growth, and our recent ‘Best App’ award recognition, give us confidence that we are meeting consumers’ needs for local news on demand. This success is a testament to our team’s and partners’ visions to provide access to timely, relevant local news across platforms. We look forward to capitalizing on this momentum and achieving major new milestones in the coming months.”

NewsON is the first-of-its-kind service that provides consumers with access to live and on-demand local newscasts as well as local news clips on mobile and connected TV devices. The free, ad-supported app features flexible navigation that encourages discovery, offering instant access to broadcast-quality video. It also enables users to search by market via an interactive map and for curated content linking coverage of breaking news events from multiple stations. The NewsON app has received a very favorable response from users, with positive ratings as well as expressions of gratitude for its service across platforms.

The NewsON app is available for Apple iPhone and iPad, Android phone and tablet, and on the Roku platform on Roku players and Roku TVs.

About NewsON

NewsON provides a nationwide lineup of local news from trusted, credible TV stations, giving consumers access to live and on-demand local newscasts and local news clips. NewsON is available for Apple iPhone and iPad, Android phone and tablet, and Roku devices, and offers a free, ad-supported app which features instant access to broadcast-quality video. The NewsON ownership group includes the ABC Owned Television Station Group, Cox Media Group, Hearst Television, Hubbard Broadcasting, Media General, Raycom Media and Sinclair Broadcast Group, and also includes additional station groups that are dedicated to serving customers across platforms in their communities and beyond.

Contacts:

For NewsON:

Valerie Christopherson/Lora Wilson

Global Results Comms (GRC)

+1 949 608 0276

NewsON@globalresultspr.com