AwesomenessTV Eschews Virtual Reality, Debuts Kik Chatbot At First-Ever NewFronts Presentation

At its first-ever NewFronts presentation this evening, AwesomenessTV founder Brian Robbins pointedly noted that the company had no news to share on the virtual reality front, which happened to be a popular medium to tout at many of this year’s other presentations.

However, Robbins did note that Awesomeness was foraying into another buzzy digital realm: chat bots — or popular software that’s designed to simulate conversations with users over the Internet. A so-called AwesomenessTV bot debuted today on the instant messaging app Kik — which Robbins said is used by 40% of U.S. teens — that will enable fans to dialogue with the network. In the future, Awesomeness will debut new bots based on characters from its scripted series to offer viewers “companion narratives, behind-the-scenes features, and alternative endings,” the company said in a press release.

All told, Awesomeness content is available on 31 platforms today, including its just-launched Apple TV app. Robbins said the company creates more than 800 hours of programming every year and comprises three total brands: its hallmark AwesomenessTV entity is aimed at Gen Zers; the faster-growing DreamWorksTV targets kids and the teenage set; and Awestruck, which just added GloZell Green and Molly Sims to its influencer community, is aimed squarely at millennial moms.

Awesomeness announced a slew of new shows tonight. Perhaps most notably, however, Robbins shared that two-year-old DreamWorksTV — which counts more YouTube subscribers than Nickelodeon, Disney, or Cartoon Network, the company said — is getting its first-ever live awards show property, the Kids’ Game Awards. Produced by The Game Awards’ Geoff Keighley, the interactive show will honor the best titles in kids’ gaming this October.

Awesomeness and Awestruck also announced several new series each, including t@gged, a psychological thriller series starring Lia Marie Johnson and Jc Caylen about a murderer who tags three teenage girls’ social profiles to a post about a horrific killing, and Glo All In, a docu-series in which YouTube star GloZell Green shares her struggles with fertility and journey to motherhood. Kian Lawley will also co-star in the forthcoming feature film Before I Fall, about a girl who must relive the same day over and over again. And AwesomenessTV and Major League Baseball will team together on a forthcoming branded series in the vein of Royal Crush — AwesomenessTV’s number one show, which is produced in collaboration with Royal Caribbean International and is set almost entirely on one of the company’s cruise ships.

To this end, AwesomenessTV’s chief partnership officer, Paul Kelly, noted that the company wasn’t going to be announcing a separate branded content studio — as has also been the wont of many digital networks at this year’s NewFronts. “We are creating premium content experiences that are true to the audience,” Robbins said in a statement, “and if brands can join us in the process, it’s a win for everyone.”

On the advertising front, however, the company did announce a partnership with leading video analytics company ZEFR. The two will offer a program called Signal that will analyze AwesomenessTV’s branded content and align ads “with the right videos and distribute it with unprecedented relevancy,” AwesomenessTV said.