CBS Sports has announced that they are opening their popular fantasy sports service to third party developers. The new Fantasy Platform will be the first of its kind. The platform will host apps from a variety of developers who will have access to comprehensive APIs for the Fantasy Platform.

Six companies have signed on to the program as initial Fantasy Platform partners. Apps from MLB.com, Bloomberg, and others will be available in the CBSSports.com App Central when it launches on January 31st. A developer web site for the platform offers a variety of tools for those interested in creating apps for the platform.

The decision to open the platform up for development comes from an awareness that fantasy sports players are accessing a wide variety of tools to manage their teams. Jason Kind, Senior Vice President and General Manager of CBSSports.com, says that “providing outside developers access to our proprietary service will benefit the entire fantasy industry ecosystem, creating additional value for companies, developers, and advertisers while consolidating and enhancing the experience for fantasy players.” The Fantasy Platform is designed to offer players the chance to integrate key fantasy management tools directly into their team management, helping to streamline the process and make it more enjoyable for players.

The initial six Fantasy Platform partners are Advanced Sports Media, Bloomberg Sports, MLB.com, Rotowire, StatSheet, and Ziguana.