Crackle Plus, part of Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, introduced new viewer-friendly advertising products and expanded distribution for its Crackle and Popcornflix AVOD services.
“We are excited to introduce Crackle Plus, a majority-owned subsidiary of Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment formed with Sony Pictures Television, to the NewFronts after a year of rapid growth and momentum across our brands,” said Philippe Guelton, president of Crackle Plus. “Through our original and exclusive programming, a viewer-friendly ad experience, and the use of proprietary data and insights, Crackle Plus provides an unmatched opportunity for marketers to engage with a hard-to-reach audience in a premium content environment.”
Crackle Plus showed media buyers FreeView, an interactive ad unit that will run at the beginning of a view stream. The company said that FreeView allows for the elimination of mid-roll commercials in original or exclusive series while giving sponsors high levels of engagement and visibility.
At the same time, the company is introducing Jumbotron ads on the Crackle home page that allows marketers to share with viewers short-form branded entertainment or a full episode of a sponsored show.
Crackle also said it has expanded its availability. Recently launched on Plex, its networks will soon be coming to Xfinity Flex and Fubo TV. It is also available in 500,000 Marriott hotel rooms.
Research conducted for Crackle Plus by Magid, Nielsen and iSpot.tv found that 80% of Crackle viewers said they don’t watch linear TV. As a result, Cranks will be offering all upfront buyers an incremental reach study as part of their marketing plan.
In marrying our amazing content with the capabilities of leading data and technology partners to allow buyers to transact way beyond demographics, Crackle Plus is truly ‘TV with benefits,’” said Darren Olive, executive vice president, sales and strategy. “With more touch points than ever before, we look forward to helping our clients create real, authentic connections.”
