Pocket.watch Passes 1-Billion Views Per Month -Announces Partnerships With YouTube Mega-Brands EvanTube And CaptainSparklez, A Book Imprint With Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, And Expansion Of Its Executive Team And Advisors
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 21, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Adding to its existing portfolio of YouTube mega-brands, pocket.watch today announced new partnerships with two top YouTube creators, EvanTube and CaptainSparklez. They join previously announced partners Ryan Toys Review, the largest channel based in the US, and HobbyKidsTV. EvanTube, encompassing a portfolio of kids and family channels including EvanTubeHD, JillianTubeHD and EvanTubeGaming, was started over six years ago and has amassed over 5 Billion lifetime views and 9 Million subscribers. CaptainSparklez, a gaming entertainment channel created by Jordan Maron, has accumulated over 10 Million subscribers and over 3 Billion views over its seven year lifetime. In just six months, pocket.watch is garnering over one billion monthly views across twenty YouTube channels with a combined subscriber base of over 34 Million.
"Pocket.watch's team of great executives is building something unique in kids and family entertainment and we know we can work together to grow our brand and bring it to a much wider audience in many new places," said Jared, creator of the EvanTube channels.
With these two new partners, pocket.watch continues to build its franchise brand portfolio. And in a move to further grow and extend pocket.watch's franchises, the company has formed a new partnership with Simon Spotlight, a division of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, that will create books under the pocket.watch brand.
"I'm incredibly excited to bring EvanTube and CaptainSparklez into the pocket.watch family," said pocket.watch CEO Chris M. Williams. "While all of our creator partners have seen tremendous success on YouTube," Williams adds, "we've only scratched the surface for growing their brands with premium series, licensed merchandise, games, live events and, of course, books through our new Simon Spotlight imprint."
The imprint underscores pocket.watch's continued momentum in growing its franchise brands which includes four of the biggest kids and family brands on YouTube and its original IP including the previously announced premium series Skoogle created by Kenan Thompson (Saturday Night Live) and HobbyKids Adventures created by Butch Hartman (Fairly OddParents) based on HobbyKidsTV, and other unannounced properties that comprise the company's original slate of fifteen-and-counting series. The first books from the new imprint are scheduled to publish in late fall 2018.
"Pocket.watch has a great portfolio of kids and family franchise brands and original IP that are ripe for growth through books and we couldn't be more enthusiastic about the prospects of this groundbreaking partnership," said Valerie Garfield, Vice President, Publisher, Novelty & Licensed Publishing, for Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing.
To help the media company manage its continued growth, pocket.watch has appointed Bruce Gordon as its Chief Financial Officer. Bruce is a 30-year Walt Disney Company financial vet, who spent his last ten years at Disney as the CFO of Disney Interactive, making him the perfect CFO to oversee pocket.watch's diverse monetization model.
Pocket.watch has also assembled an experienced team of advisors that include a cross-section of executives with backgrounds in marketing, technology, gaming and media. Pocket.watch's advisors are:
Kerry Tucker – Former CEO, Hello Sunshine; Former COO, The Video Genome Project (Acquired by Hulu); Former EVP, Marketing, Victoria's Secret
Barry Blumberg – Former Chief Content Officer, Defy Media; Former President, TV Animation, The Walt Disney Company
Jacob Shwirtz – Global Head of Social Media Strategy, WeWork; Former Chief Social Media Officer, Endemol Beyond US
Greg Clayman – Former President, Vertical Networks; Former GM, Audience Networks, Vimeo; Former Publisher/EVP, Digital, News Corporation
Jon Goldman – Venture Partner, Greycroft; Managing Partner, Skybound; Former President, Skybound Interactive
For more information about pocket.watch and its unique approach to kids entertainment, please visit: http://pocket.watch
ABOUT POCKET.WATCH
Pocket.watch is a media brand that creates, acquires, distributes and curates entertainment for kids ages 2-11 and presents it across a variety of platforms. The company boasts a growing portfolio of franchises that includes some of the largest kids and family YouTube brands in the world alongside original characters and talent. Pocket.watch was founded in March 2017 by Chris M. Williams and is located in Culver City, CA where it maintains an office and studio. The management team is made up of studio veterans and visionaries from traditional and digital entertainment including Albie Hecht, Jon Moonves and David B. Williams. Investors include Third Wave Digital and United Talent Agency (UTA), as well as notable strategic angels including Les Moonves, Robert Downey Jr. (Team Downey) and Jon Landau.
ABOUT SIMON & SCHUSTER CHILDREN'S PUBLISHING
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, one of the leading children's book publishers in the world, is comprised of the following imprints: Aladdin, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Beach Lane Books, Libros para niños, Little Simon®, Margaret K. McElderry Books, Paula Wiseman Books, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Simon Pulse, and Simon Spotlight®. While maintaining an extensive award-winning backlist, the division continues to publish acclaimed and bestselling books for children of all ages. Simon & Schuster publishes numerous Caldecott, Newbery, and National Book Award winners. For more information about Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, visit our website at www.simonandschuster.com.
Simon & Schuster, a part of CBS Corporation, is a global leader in the field of general interest publishing, dedicated to providing the best in fiction and nonfiction for consumers of all ages, across all printed, electronic, and audio formats. Its divisions include Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing, Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, Simon & Schuster Audio, Simon & Schuster Digital, and international companies in Australia, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. For more information, visit our website at www.simonandschuster.com.
Contact: Rachel Rogers / Ashley Lyublinsky / Zoe Raynor
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SOURCE pocket.watch
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