TV loyalty rewards service Viggle is buying social network GetGlue for $25 million and 48.3 million shares of stock.
GetGlue works in a similar way to FourSquare, giving users virtual stickers for checking in while watching shows or movies. Those virtual stickers are then turned into real-life ones and mailed to users for their collection.
“Don’t worry stickers are not going away!” GetGlue’s announcement of the merger reads. The stickers feature shows and movies, as well as GetGlue ranks and levels.
Viggle, which bills itself “the first ever loyalty program for television,” awards users points for “checking in” through an app when they watch TV shows. The app uses audio fingerprinting tech to identify automatically which show a user is watching.
Then, Viggle users can cash in points for gift cards from partners includingBarnes & Noble , Best Buy, Chili’s, Apple’s iTunes and more.
Greg Consiglio, Viggle president and COO, said the Viggle app has been making money since it launched and the company intends to do the same with GetGlue. GetGlue brings 3.2 million registered users — and a slew of media partners — to Viggle. Viggle’s app, which has 1.2 million users, automatically checks in for users using audio recognition and gives out points based on how many times they watch a show. These points are exchanged for gift cards or products.
Read the official blog here
