The Sun will start by posting 12 snaps in each edition, seven days a week, at 6am. This, says The Sun, gives a head-start on other media brands that publish around 12noon in time for when the US wakes up. The Sun will instead keep its focus on the UK audience.
Derek Brown, head of strategy at The Sun, said: “When we started this, I had a good look at what everybody else was doing and I wasn’t convinced people were using the platform as well as they could be.
“User testing has shown there’s an appetite for the UK reality TV stars, ‘Geordie Shore’s’ Vicky Pattison or ‘The Only Way is Essex’s’ Mario Falcone, that wouldn’t get coverage in other outlets. More local advertising and publisher partners is also something agencies have been keen to see too.”
The move is seen as a brand building opportunity for those who do not read the paper or go to the website, but also to add another advertising revenue stream.
Gaming companies 2K Games and Activision are advertising partners of the launch, with more agencies getting involved after the first two weeks, say the publishers.
Brown added: “Advertisers have said to our commercial team that they need a longer lead times to get their head around the format, so for those who are unsure I’ve extended the olive branch and said we’ll make the ads for them.”
