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Nickelodeon’s ‘Double Dare’ finds new life in Facebook Messenger
Nickelodeon's game show Double Dare is now a Facebook game. The classic show originally aired from 1986 to 1993 and recently just made its return to Nickelodeon. Now, fans will be able to play a version of Double Dare themselves through Facebook Messenger, challenging friends and keeping track of who's on top via the game's leaderboard.
Nickelodeon's new animated show will be made with game engine
Nickelodeon's new TV show Meet the Voxels will be created with a video game engine, Variety reports. The studio's R&D unit, Nickelodeon Entertainment Lab, worked on the techniques and methods that will be applied to the show. Meet the Voxels's premise is centered around video games, as each member of the titular family is a star in a video game franchise (or is hoping to become one).
Viacom launches studio dedicated to shows for YouTube and Facebook
Viacom has come a long, long way from the days when online video was seemingly its mortal enemy. The media giant has formally launched Digital Studios, a wing dedicated to (you guessed it) original internet shows. The initial programs in the works are all attached to familiar names like BET, Comedy Central, MTV and Nickelodeon, and will be available across services like Facebook Watch, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube -- it won't just involve the previously unveiled Snapchat plans.
Nickelodeon will use VR and AR to keep kids off Netflix and YouTube
Nickelodeon has announced an explosion of content for the 2018-2019 season in a bid to keep easily-distracted kids watching the network. More than 800 brand new episodes of new and returning series will hit its screens -- a 20 percent increase compared to last year -- and it plans on moving into the VR and AR landscape through its kid-facing apps.
Viacom says its streaming service will launch this year
Yesterday, Viacom CFO Wade Davis said during an earnings call that the company is planning to launch its own streaming service this year, TechCrunch reports. Davis said that while withholding much of its content from other streaming services has reduced the revenue it could have collected, it also allowed the company to go forward with its own service. "In terms of the amount of content that it's going to have, it's going to have tens of thousands of hours of content that cut across the library we have on a global basis," said Davis. "And it's important to note one of the reasons that we are able to do this is that we've chosen to curtail the amount of content that we license into third-party [business to consumer] experiences."
Nickelodeon is betting on amateur, kid-focused eSports
Nickelodeon and a handful of other investors -- including professional sports-team owners -- have just thrown $15 million at Super League Gaming, an organization that holds amateur eSports tournaments in movie theaters across the US for kids, teens and adults. Super League is best known for its national Minecraft championship, which last year paid out $15,000 to a winning team of kids age 10 to 14, though it also regularly holds nationwide League of Legends tournaments for players of any age.
T-Mobile adds more services to Binge On and Music Freedom
T-Mobile's Binge On and Music Freedom plans for streaming video and music without gobbling up your data add new services to the data-free initiative on the regular. Today, the Un-carrier is adding even more. Amazon Music and ESPN Radio are the two notable additions to Music Freedom while Binge On video now includes Nickelodeon, Spike, TV Land and Epix. Legere & Co. have been preaching this version of streaming for a while, and today the company says the options for streaming that won't cut into your monthly allotment now tally over 100. And that includes porn.
Targeted, interactive ads are coming to the Roku platform
Roku and advertising firm Innovid have joined forces to make advertisements on the company's streaming set-top boxes both more accurate and more entertaining. The new ad format will reportedly allow viewers to do things like play games (using the Roku remote), browse a retailer's stock and current sales, or even watch extended videos should they wish. Unfortunately, skipping the ads entirely doesn't appear to be an available option just yet. CBS, VEVO and Crackle have already signed on for the new service. Roku and Innovid actually began implementing this new system just over a month ago, however, it's only now going live. This news follows a pair of recent announcements from Roku that both Showtime and Nickelodeon are being made available to its users as well. What's more, the Innovid pairing will also allow advertisers to better target their desired audiences based on the user's location.
Nickelodeon is now streaming to the Roku platform
Nickelodeon announced Thursday that its popular streaming app is now available on Roku-enabled devices and televisions. The Nick App (which is already available on the App Store, Google Play, Amazon and Xbox 360) delivers full episodes of the network's live-action and animated shows. The app's been downloaded more than 16 million times since its debut in 2013 and can be found in the "Kids & Family" section of the Roku Channel Store.
Nickelodeon's standalone streaming service is coming in February
With networks announcing new streaming options on the regular, Nickelodeon is set to reveal a standalone service of its own. During an investor call this morning, Viacom chief Philippe Dauman said the kid-friendly channel will announce its subscription plans in February, targeting mobile devices. Details are scarce for now, but we should hear more soon, as the first of the month is imminent. HBO and CBS have already revealed their plans for cord cutters, and both AMC and ESPN are rumored to be mulling similar models, too. Of course, Nickelodeon will have to compete with the likes of Amazon and Netflix who already offer dedicated streams for younger viewers, included with subscriptions that parents are already paying for. [Photo credit: Shearer/Invision/AP]
Comedy Central bringing 'Key and Peele' and 'South Park' to Chromecast (update)
Sure, there are plenty of hilarious videos on YouTube, but even the best parkour-fail clip can't compare to a bang-on episode of South Park or Key and Peele. In that case, your Chromecast is about to get a a few more laughs thanks to the Comedy Central mobile app getting support for Google's streaming stick. There's some kid-friendly fare en route too -- Sesame Street Go and Nickelodeon will soon be castable to your flat-screen as well. You'll almost positively need a cable subscription (or know someone with one) to access the respective TV-network content, and to pay a separate fee to beam Big Bird to your big-screen. Don't have those? Well, until then, there's always Scrabble to help pass the time. Update: Today's news also includes the addition of TuneIn, Encore Play, EPIX, and YuppTV joining the ranks of the Broad City, Spongebob and Cookie Monster outfits. [Image credit: Evan Agostini/Invision/AP]
The Legend of Korra review: Bend it like Bayonetta
Bending the elements like folks do in The Legend of Korra is an intoxicating dream. Much as they did in the original Avatar: The Last Airbender cartoon, many people born in Korra's world can freely manipulate the four elements through martial arts. The Avatar, born into every generation to maintain the spiritual balance of the world Dalai Lama style, is the only one who can bend all four. Fire from your fingers, literally riding the wind, lifting up the earth to make an easy chair, and never needing a squirt gun; the promise of feeling unity with the physical world, even if you're just playing around, is mesmerizing. Who wouldn't want to do that? That Platinum Games captures even a little of that feeling in its video game adaptation of The Legend of Korra is impressive, but physical fantasy is only one piece of the show's winning formula. Platinum's made a fun, flighty, sometimes infuriatingly pedantic game that's admirably old fashioned but disappointingly limited. The Legend of Korra is a strong body missing most of its heart. [Images: Activision/Nickelodeon]
Who let the polar bear dogs out - Platinum's Legend of Korra did
We once lived in a world without hope of a Legend of Korra video game. But everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked Platinum Games announced that they would develop a game based on Nickelodeon's animated adventure series. IGN has the first gameplay footage from the upcoming project, which shows Korra using the elements to dispatch her foes. Of course, if throwing water, earth, wind and fire at your opponents isn't quite exciting enough for you, it looks like you'll also get a chance to ride Korra's polar bear dog, Naga. The demo shown is running on PlayStation 4, though the final game will be available on PS3, Xbox 360, Xbox One and PC as well come this fall. [Image: Platinum Games]
The Legend of Korra: as told by Bayonetta dev Platinum Games
The Legend of Korra, Nickelodeon's animated successor to Avatar: The Last Airbender, is being turned into a cel-shaded pummelfest by Platinum Games. The announcement comes a few days ahead of the third-season premiere of The Legend of Korra on June 27. Platinum's take on Korra, overseen by show scribe Tim Hedrick and rooted between Book 2 and Book 3 of the show, will be available only for download on PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC this fall. Platinum Games, the Japanese studio behind The Wonderful 101, Metal Gear Rising, and Bayonetta (which has itself been adapted into an anime), is hinging its Legend of Korra game on the protagonist's established strengths. Beyond a barrage of swift kicks, punches and counters, Korra can summon fire, wind, water and earth in spirited combat. The game also sees Korra hurtling down the streets of Republic City atop her polar bear-dog, Naga, and fighting in pro-bending tournaments, which are staged arena battles in which elemental users fight one another for territory. Publisher Activision has also announced a different Legend of Korra game for Nintendo 3DS, developed as a strategy role-playing game by Webfoot Technologies.
Nickelodeon's new interactive kids channel will bring streaming features to live TV
As parents have rapidly discovered, kids don't really mind the drawbacks of Amazon or Netflix streaming (limited, older versions of the same content library) and just want to watch their favorite show, often repeatedly. That's where the internet services are beating traditional TV channels, and Nickelodeon has been preparing an answer. As confirmed to the Wall Street Journal and Fierce Cable, its new "My Nick Jr." channel will appear in the guide like any other, but provides a custom lineup of shows based on preselected preferences, and even cuts out the ads. Other features will let parents monitor what their kids watch and set time limits, while the kids can rate shows with a smile or frown. There's no word on the technology behind My Nick Jr., but it's coming to Verizon's FiOS TV service first in the US, and eventually mobile devices too. Viacom already tested out the service on France's CanalSat, and hints that the personalized channel concept could spread to its other networks like MTV. A major issue holding it back however, is the presence of millions of older cable boxes that won't be able to handle the new setup. So far, massive conglomerates like Viacom and the existing US TV carriers have shown little interest in chopping up their bundles or offering video on-demand-style access as an alternative. Besides an abundance of network-specific mobile apps, this channel is one of the first steps toward that line; we'll see if increasing competition and original streaming content pushes things further.
Lovefilm gets MTV and Nickelodeon through streaming deal with Viacom
Earlier this year, Amazon reached a deal with Viacom to keep many of the media company's shows on Prime Instant Video, even scoring some exclusive content along the way. Now it's time for Amazon's other streaming service, Lovefilm, to benefit from a similar agreement. As you'd expect, Lovefilm's UK subscribers will now be able to enjoy a variety of content from Viacom networks, including shows on MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. And fret not if you don't enjoy shows like Jersey Shore -- at the very least you'll have the likes of SpongeBob and Go Diego Go! to keep the kiddos busy while you catch up on Man v. Food.
Xbox brings laughter to all ages with Comedy Central and Nickelodeon apps
Xbox Live Gold customers, get ready for a chucklefest in your living room. Two new apps to tickle the funny bone have just arrived for Microsoft's console courtesy of Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. We heard rumblings about the latter being added to the roster a while ago, but it looks like that has finally come to fruition. Your kids can enjoy full episodes of their favorite Nick shows, short videos and special animated shorts. The Comedy Central app is a touch more adult-oriented of course, with a focus on the channel's stand-up offerings. Dubbed "CC: Stand-up," the app boasts more than 6,000 videos of routines from around 700 comedians. So whether you're into Aziz Ansari or Spongebob Squarepants, you'll be able to get your fix via Xbox Live starting today.
New side-scrolling Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game arriving in October
A new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game is coming in October, Activision announced via press release. The game is based on the Nickelodeon animated series, and is described as a "side-scrolling action-brawler" with "loads of combat and animated scenes." It is the product of a multi-year, three-game deal between Activision and Nickelodeon, first announced in February. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles will launch on October 22 in North America, October 23 in Asia and Australia and October 25 in Europe and Latin America for 3DS, Wii and Xbox 360. %Gallery-194267%
Viacom lands deal to show TV highlights on Twitter starting August 25th
While Viacom hasn't always understood how this whole internet video thing works, it's showing some tech savviness today with confirmation of rumors that it's joining Twitter's Amplify program. Beginning with the MTV Video Music Awards on August 25th, Viacom will deliver ad-backed video highlights on Twitter for shows and events across its channel range, including MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. In theory, the agreement is a win for everyone: Viacom and Twitter get more revenue, while we get a legal way to revisit those inevitable celebrity slip-ups. The two sides haven't said how long their partnership will last, although we wouldn't be surprised if results from the VMA broadcast help shape the deal's future.
Amazon, Viacom deal keeps many TV shows on Prime and Kindle, some exclusively
In May Netflix let a broad content deal with Viacom (parent company of Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, MTV and more) expire and saw many of the network's shows disappear from its streaming service, but Amazon will not follow its lead. Today the company announced an extension in its own agreement with Viacom that not only keeps the TV shows (over 250 seasons including more than 3,900 episodes) but includes a provision for a "selection" of exclusives. That means Amazon will stream Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. kids shows like Dora the Explorer, The Backyardigans, Blues Clues and Victorious, with some available as part of the Kindle FreeTime Unlimited package on its tablets and some heading to Lovefilm in Germany and the UK later this summer. Other shows affected by the deal include current and upcoming ones from MTV and Comedy Central like Workaholics, Key and Peele and Awkward. For its part, Netflix has also expanded a deal with Disney and is even producing an original kids show of its own to follow up on projects like House of Cards and Arrested Development, but so is Amazon. As competition in the subscription streaming market intensifies expect to see more exclusives as studios play the services against each others to drive prices up -- as seen here, if one decides to invest more in original content and deals for specific content there will likely be a cost in other areas.
