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CEO Of StumbleUpon’s 5by Talks New Apps, Plans To ‘Take Over The Living Room’

Back in September, StumbleUpon made its first acquisition, buying video discovery service 5by. Today, they’ve launched a 5by app for both iOS and Android (beta). 5by continues to operate indepen...
CEO Of StumbleUpon’s 5by Talks New Apps, Plans To ‘Take Over The Living Room’
Written by Chris Crum
  • Back in September, StumbleUpon made its first acquisition, buying video discovery service 5by. Today, they’ve launched a 5by app for both iOS and Android (beta).

    5by continues to operate independently, and CEO Greg Isenberg tells WebProNews that so far there isn’t any direct integration between the two services. He does admit that they’ve been thinking about it, however.

    “Our #1 priority has been (and is) creating a product that’s help people find those gems of videos that they really care about and deliver it in a beautiful way,” he tells us. “Integration points have not been a huge priority.”

    “StumbleUpon pioneered content discovery and helps people discover and explore the best content on the internet,” he adds. “We’ve been able to leverage that knowledge, acumen and resources to build 5by into what it is today.”

    And what it is today, literally, in addition to its existing web-based service, is a new mobile app. Here’s what it looks like:

    5by

    5by

    With the app, users input their moods and interests, and 5by creates personalized video playlists from an index of millions of videos based on that. Content recommendations are further personalized by people’s tastes as they watch and rate videos.

    “The first layer of personalization comes from our editorial team based on multiple video sources to uncover the best content,” Isenberg explains. “Then the next layer of personalization revolves around how the user interacts with the app. The more you interact with the app, such as skipping videos or putting a smiley face on a video you thought was funny, the more we learn about you and the more we can deliver videos we think you’re going to like. We like to think about 5by as your personal video concierge that’s constantly learning about your likes and dislikes and only gets better over time.”

    Such an app seems ideal for TV-connected devices. Asked about plans for such apps, Isenberg tells us, “Our focus right now is delivering the best experience possible on iOS/Android but we’re definitely thinking and investing in ways to build for the 10 ft experience. There is a real opportunity to create a truly lean back experience around YouTube/Vimeo videos and we think that can deliver a remarkable experience eventually on those platforms.”

    As far as what’s next, he says, “More personalization and continue to find new ways to bring our users the best possible videos out there. Continue to expand to new platforms and really take over the living room. TV apps, gaming consoles, you name it.”

    This mirrors some of the things StumbleUpon CEO Mark Bartels told us in an interview a few months ago.

    Images via Google Play

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