It’s not hard to find video on the web. But with dozens of premium content providers out there and millions of videos to choose from, figuring out what’s worth watching can be a challenge. That’s why Fanhattan is bringing its video discovery platform to the web.
Fanhattan originally launched as an iOS app for the iPad, allowing its users to search and discover content across a wide range of apps that content producers and distributors had launched on the device. Rather than checking out Netflix, Hulu Plus, Amazon, iTunes, and other premium content providers individually, users can search for the content they want across all those platforms through the Fanhattan app.
While mobile and tablet viewing is still a relatively new phenomenon, more than 100 million people watch online video every day. As a result, Fanhattan is now extending its technology to the web, providing a platform for navigating the millions of TV and movie titles available online.
With the new Fanhattan web interface, launching in private beta today, will also drastically expand the number of content choices and providers that people can search. Due to the larger quantity of free online video options, the website will have shows and films from 29 different video providers, compared to 16 available on the iOS apps. That will mean more than a million different titles at launch. Altogether, the Fanhattan web interface has nearly three times more shows and videos available than are on the current iOS app.
The Fanhattan web experience will also add a new way of saving content for later. According to Fanhattan CEO Gilles BianRosa, iOS users typically use Fanhattan to find content that they want to watch instantly. But web browsers (pun intended) sometimes are looking for stuff to watch later. As a result, Fanhattan provides users with the ability to WatchNow or — wait for it — WatchLater.
The WatchNow function shows users where they can instantly tune in to a piece of content. And you can probably figure out what WatchLater is for. If a title isn’t on any streaming services yet, or if it’s still in theaters, Fanhattan will let users add it to a WatchList and be notified when it becomes available. Users can even create, curate, and multiple lists for different genres of content, and share them with others.
In addition to providing users with title, cast, and crew information, Fanhattan will also have entertainment news, celebrity interviews, behind-the-scenes commentary, and reviews — giving users a more complete look into the content they’re interested in viewing. Users who are logged in through Facebook will also be able to share what they’re watching and see what their friends are viewing as well.
With its iOS apps and its web presence, Fanhattan is one step closer to being the discovery engine for streaming video on all your devices. Next stop? Getting on connected TVs and other streaming boxes.