Share
Finally bringing its famed brand of edutainment to the Internet market, the timeless characters and charm of Sesame Street are set to be unleashed through Apple’s iTunes Store and also content delivery sites such as Hulu and YouTube.
iTunes, Hulu and YouTube all offering Sesame Street content. Image: Sesame Workshop.
The shift towards official online exposure comes as Sesame Street celebrates its 39th season on Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) stations and will see series fans able to enjoy the likes of Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, Bert and Ernie, and Cookie Monster via full episodic downloads and quick-fix clips.
According to non-profit group Sesame Workshop, which was previous known as the Children’s Television Workshop, 12 complete episodes from season 35 onward are now available through iTunes for $1.99 USD each -- with Sesame Workshop receiving 70 percent of the garnered revenue.
With regard to download profit projections connected to the arrival of Sesame Street episodes on iTunes, Terry Fitzpatrick, vice president of distribution for the Sesame Workshop, said that: “It’s an area we certainly hope grows.”
Beyond purchasing full downloads, online video service Hulu, a joint venture helmed by News Corp. and NBC, will host 100 Sesame Street segments for its viewers, along with a further 30 clips from the show featuring celebrity appearances from the likes of Julia Roberts and Laurence Fishburne.
Google-owned video-sharing service YouTube will add to the many user-posted Sesame Street clips already on its pages by creating an official dedicated channel that will open with more than 100 different clips taken from the classic show.
Sadly however, those hoping to download truly old classic episodes will be left disappointed seeing as the first 10 seasons of the show, all of which are still performing well on DVD sell-through, are not included in the content delivery deals.
That being said, Sesame Workshop has indicated that new episodes and clips will be added to all three sources on a monthly basis, and viewers will be able to leave constructive feedback for the organisation to build on.
Interested in a more interactive TTH? Join our Facebook Group Want regular updates from The Tech Herald? Follow us on Twitter
Advertising
Comment on this Story