Published:
Wizzard Media Launches 24 New iPhone Apps
PITTSBURGH - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Wizzard Media (NYSE Amex: WZE), the world's largest podcasting network,
today announced the launch of 24 new iPhone Apps available for sale in
the App store including Investors Business Daily Editorials and Alaska
HDTV. The average price for the new Apps is $1.99.
The newly launched Apps are iPhone companion Apps for popular podcasts
on the Wizzard Media Network, offering audiences one-click access to the
podcast directly on their iPhone or iPod Touch, bonus content and new
social communication features creating an unprecedented level of
audience engagement.
Wizzard recently announced 2009 third quarter network numbers of 12,281
podcasts downloaded 332 million times in the quarter by over 18 million
unique monthly audience members. Approximately 70% of the audience for
podcasts subscribe through iTunes from which users download podcasts
for their iPhone and iPod. Until recently, Wizzard's only means to
derive revenues was through podcast publishing services as well as
advertising sales.
With the launch of the iPhone App store in iTunes, Wizzard created a
unique iPhone App that can be quickly customized for each podcast and
allows podcast publishers to generate a new revenue stream by marketing
their own iPhone App directly to their audience. Wizzard shares in this
revenue with the podcast publisher. Now, with Wizzard's unique podcast
companion App for the iPhone, participating podcasts can market their
customized App to their audience and then drive future reoccurring
episode and subscription sales through a process called in-App
purchasing.
Analysts project the App market to be a $1.0 billion market today,
headed for $4.0 billion by 2012. With the holiday season approaching and
the recent launch of the iPhone in China, Wizzard's Management believes
the number of people using iPhones and iPod Touches to consume podcasts
and interact with Apps will continue to grow well beyond the current 50
million user base.
Having launched the first podcast App only 95 days ago, Wizzard Media
already has launched 70 iPhone Apps with 60 more Apps awaiting approval.
Additionally, Wizzard has exclusively licensed 12 high quality, game
type Apps and is currently marketing them through targeted podcasts
across the Wizzard Media Network. Select podcast Apps on the Wizzard
Network have already helped to convert approximately 15% of their
audience from free, to paid, in the first 75 days since launch.
"We think our podcast companion App initiative is a game changer for the
podcasting industry. We believe the next great opportunity on the web
for media is the seamless combination of three trends - publishing
services, advertising and micropayments for App sales," says Dave
Mansueto, co-founder Wizzard Media. "Now, podcasting becomes a platform
that converts audiences to revenue, accelerated by the micropayment
billing process that Apple has created with the App store. We believe
this new process is the model for how digital media is published,
audiences are grown and revenues derived."
"We know there is strong demand for the podcasts we distribute seeing
downloads grow from 400 million to well over 1 billion in the last three
years and monthly audiences grow from 4 million to 18 million," says
Laurie Sims, President of Wizzard Media. "Now that we have a method to
charge for podcast content and subscriptions, we believe there is
dramatic change ahead for the podcast industry. Unlike most Apps in the
App store, podcasters have a distinct advantage to successfully market
their App in iTunes due to the fact that they have already built a
substantial audience for their product through iTunes."
About Wizzard Media:
Wizzard Media provides publishing and distribution services to
podcasters and monetization services for podcasters. Wizzard Media is
the industry's leading podcasting network with an unprecedented 1.2
billion download requests in 2008. Podcasts are a means for independent
and professional content creators to publish audio and video shows for
the world to enjoy over the Internet or on mp3 players, such as the
Apple iPod, iPhone and the Microsoft Zune®. Podcasting is a relatively
new phenomenon, but Wizzard Media collectively broadcasts millions of
podcast downloads per day through media aggregators like Apple's iTunes
and Microsoft's Zune Marketplace. For more information, please visit www.wizzardsoftware.com/media
. Wizzard Media is a division of Wizzard Software, a leader in speech
technology distribution and development.
Legal Notice
Legal Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements: "Forward-looking
Statements" as defined in the Private Securities litigation Reform Act
of 1995 may be included in this news release. These statements relate to
future events or our future financial performance. These statements are
only predictions and may differ materially from actual future results or
events. We disclaim any intention or obligation to revise any
forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information,
future developments or otherwise. There are important risk factors that
could cause actual results to differ from those contained in
forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to risks
associated with changes in general economic and business conditions,
actions of our competitors, the extent to which we are able to develop
new services and markets for our services, the time and expense involved
in such development activities, the level of demand and market
acceptance of our services, changes in our business strategies and acts
of terror against the United States.
iPod, iPod Touch, iPhone and iTunes are all registered marks or trade
names of Apple, Inc.
Arthur Douglas and Associates
Art Batson, 407-478-1120
Copyright © 2009, Business Wire, Inc., All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2009, NewsBlaze,
Daily News
Tags: Business wire, High Tech, pennsylvania, Women in the News, Consumer Electronics, Internet, Wal Mart, Sears, Nordstrom and other Retail