The Great Courses Plus Announces Voice-Activated Audio Streaming

ViewLift Harnesses Alexa to Bring Life-Long Learning Leader to Amazon Echo

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Aug 14, 2018, 08:12 ET

CHANTILLY, Va. and NEW YORK, Aug. 14, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, The Teaching Company, in conjunction with its platform partner ViewLift, announce the launch of The Great Courses Plus audio streaming on Amazon's Alexa Echo. Subscribers can now use the home assistant product to access and manage thousands of the world's best courses from TGC on topics ranging from robotics to English literature, from management to brain sciences – the most complete catalogue available anywhere, now streaming upon voice commands.

Alexa is a cloud-based voice service from Amazon. Alexa is the brain behind Amazon Echo and other Alexa-enabled devices. Using Alexa is as simple as asking a question. Amazon Echo device leads the market with around a 55% share, according to Fortune [1].

"For 25 years, The Great Courses has made it possible for any American to explore their varied interests via lectures from the world's top teachers," said Chris Ward, the company's Senior Director of Product. "Being the market-leader extends from the content to the delivery, and working with ViewLift, we have been able to provide our courses on all devices, whether on-the-go or at-home. Alexa is pioneering the voice-command home assistant revolution, and we are happy to add it to the ways users can experience The Great Courses Plus."

The Great Courses Plus product, first launched in 2016 has become the premier video on demand service for lifelong learners. The introduction of the streaming service resulted in a surge of interest from new customers, eager to explore its rich content library. With more than 14,000 lectures and 600 original series to date, The Great Courses continues to pioneer the digital ecosystem with innovative experiences for fans around the world.

"Our ViewLift platform incorporates the newest technologies to make great content available to global audiences when and where they want," noted ViewLift CEO Rick Allen. "I have been a customer of The Great Courses for years, and like all of its users, I appreciate being able to enjoy the lectures across any of the devices I use. With Alexa, life-long learning is now a whisper away."

About The Teaching Company
Creating unique learning experiences since 1990, The Great Courses and The Great Courses Plus are the premier brands of The Teaching Company, the nation's leading developer and marketer of premium-quality media for lifelong learning and personal enrichment. Delivered in engaging, expertly-produced video and audio—in convenient online, digital, video-on-demand, and disc formats—these carefully crafted courses provide access to a world of knowledge from the most accomplished professors and experts. The content-rich, proprietary library spans more than 600 series with more than 14,000 lectures designed to expand horizons, deepen understanding, and foster epiphanies in the arts, science, literature, self-improvement, history, music, philosophy, theology, economics, mathematics, business, professional advancement, and personal development. Creating unique learning experiences since 1990, The Teaching Company Sales, LLC of Chantilly, Virginia is owned by Los Angeles-based Brentwood Associates. More information can be found at www.thegreatcourses.com.

About ViewLift
ViewLift is a full-service digital content distribution platform empowering media companies, sports leagues and teams, education providers and others to monetize their content through native branded apps on major OTT devices including web, mobile, TV-connected devices, Smart TVs and gaming consoles. ViewLift's founding team brings years of domain experience as an operator (not just a technology provider) and strong industry relationships to offer a complete end-to-end solution for creating, launching and monetizing video applications across all major device platforms. ViewLift operates across the digital ecosystem, understanding each device's unique requirements and best practices. ViewLift offers clients a range of monetization models on a proprietary platform with advanced analytics, tracking performance in real-time. ViewLift is backed by leading VC firms, including New Enterprise Associates, Comcast Ventures, and Clark Enterprises, as well as tech and media pioneers Ted Leonsis, Steve and Jean Case, Terry Semel, Robert McCormack and others. ViewLift clients include: TEGNA; Monumental Sports Network; The Great Courses; Lax Sports Network; Major League Lacrosse; Arena Football League; SnagFilms; and others.

Source
[1] http://fortune.com/2018/02/22/apple-homepod-amazon-echo-market-share/

SOURCE ViewLift