Time Inc. launches Instant to cover 'new famous' in digital media

(NEW YORK, May 17, 2016) —Time Inc. (NYSE: TIME) today announced the upcoming launch of INSTANT, a mobile-first, all-video platform featuring content about the lives and projects of digital celebrities as well as content created by digital celebrities exclusively for INSTANT.

INSTANT will deliver fresh news, features and exclusives about and by “the new famous,” the digital artists of YouTube, Snapchat, Instagram, YouNow, Vine and other platforms to come. And it will be presented exactly where and how its audience consumes content – on mobile devices and video. Content will be created by the INSTANT team and by digital artists with massive followings and intense engagement with their own audiences, as well as by fast-growing emerging talent.

The INSTANT user experience will be unlike any available on mobile web today – a fluid video stream allowing the audience to engage with content immediately, intuitively and without interruption. INSTANT delivers a native app-like experience directly in the mobile browser, with no extra download required. INSTANT will be a 100% native and branded advertising-driven product, with the ad product a seamless part of the editorial offering.

“PEOPLE, Entertainment Weekly and HelloGiggles are the perfect brands to help launch INSTANT, a tremendously future-leaning platform dedicated to an exciting new generation of creators,” said Rich Battista, President of the Time Inc. Entertainment & Sports Group and Video.

“Just as PEOPLE and EW have led and transformed celebrity and pop culture coverage for years,” said Jess Cagle, Editorial Director of PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly, “INSTANT will be the media authority on the new famous.”

“Digital artists are the most explosive and addictive phenomenon in celebrity and entertainment today,” said Will Lee, Digital Editorial Director for PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly. “INSTANT will be the first and foremost platform for and by these creators, with a beautiful new consumption experience for our audience.”

INSTANT’s dedicated production team will be led by editorial director Kirstin Benson, who will report to Will Lee, and will oversee all editorial, native and social media content for the site. Benson joins the INSTANT team from WhoSay, where she led editorial operations for nearly two years.

Daily editions of INSTANT will feature “snackable,” shareable videos—called “Instants”—across many digital verticals, including entertainment, beauty, fashion, food and social media, covered through the unique perspective of digital artists, and frequently created and curated by the digital artists themselves. INSTANT and digital celebrity content will have a significant presence in the PEOPLE and EW ecosystems – websites, social channels, and in the magazines. In addition, INSTANT will work closely with HelloGiggles, the female millennial brand acquired by Time Inc. in October 2015, as a premier launch partner, conceiving and producing a variety of programming, audience strategy, and experiential initiatives together throughout launch and beyond, amplifying and emphasizing HelloGiggles’ positive messaging mission.

Consumers will get a first look at INSTANT and learn more about the new product at VidCon 2016, to be held June 23-25 in Anaheim, CA.