National Geographic and Optus launch revamped mobile app
National Geographic has marked the relaunch of its smartphone app with a digital series, Only in Oz.
The series, hosted by National Geographic travellers Tyson Mayr, Luke Joseph Ryan, Steph Bendixsen and guest reporter Nush Freedman, features stories from around Australia with new episodes to be released weekly on the National Geographic app.
Designed to bring National Geographic’s 131-year storytelling legacy into the digital era, the app includes a photo library, digital articles, National Geographic magazine archives and over 3,000 short-form videos and documentaries, including new content produced with Optus exclusively for the app.
The series of 10 short-form Only in Oz episodes cover extremities of Australia including dinosaur digs in Queensland to Carnac Island off the coast of Perth, where an estimated 400 deadly tiger snakes are the chief inhabitants.
Tim Jones, ANZ managing director of National Geographic Partners, said: “National Geographic is focused on educating and entertaining in equal measure, taking the National Geographic brand from reverence to relevance in a digital and mobile world.
“Our collaboration with Optus is all about leading the way to the future of 360-degree storytelling, with a wide range of diverse content that can be easily digested on the go.
“App users can get closer to our explorers, photographers, filmmakers, scientists and conservationists.
Optus’ head of TV and content Corin Dimopoulos, added: “We are excited to be extending the National Geographic App to any customer, on any network, as long as they have an active mobile service and supported device.
“The app has exceeded benchmarks with Australians who are engaging across a broad range of mobile-first content, personalised for them from snackable facts about animals, history and science and amazing photography, through to National Geographic’s premium TV boxsets.
“We know Australians want to access entertainment on mobile devices at a time that suits them. That’s why we’ve improved accessibility and made the app available on tablets as well as mobile phones, which is especially useful for keeping families informed and entertained while on-the-go.”
Eligible Optus mobile customers will have full access to the National Geographic app at no extra cost until June 2020 with the app also available to Optus broadband customers.
Non-Optus customers and non-eligible Optus customers can download a free version of the app with access to a curated feed of content available on existing National Geographic digital platforms, or can upgrade to a $9.99 per month subscription to unlock all premium content.
