ABC Owned Stations Get Amazon Fire Apps

Disney-ABC has announced that all eight of its ABC Owned Stations now have their own market-specific Amazon Fire OTT apps, featuring local news, top stories for each evening, weather and a “Feel Good” section for those looking for a more upbeat selection of local content.

The eight station apps include WLS-TV Chicago, WABC-TV New York, KABC-TV Los Angeles, WPVI-TV Philadelphia, KGO-TV San Francisco, KTRK-TV Houston, WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham and KFSN-TV Fresno. Millennial-targeted network Freeform—formerly ABC Family —also has a live streaming app for Amazon Fire TV available, ABC announced.

“Disney-ABC has been seeing a significant increase in viewing on connected TV devices over the last year so it make sense for us to make sure that our owned stations have a presence and that we’re delivering a robust service,” Wendy McMahon, senior VP of digital media for ABC Owned Stations, told B&C. “With these apps, we are taking what we do best — local video storytelling — to the next level by delivering to a traditional TV screen but with the user controls and navigation allowed on an IP based platform.”

With authentication, the Freeform and ABC apps allow viewers to stream regular programming, including Modern FamilyPretty Little Liars and The Bachelor on demand, while for Freeform, the network is making 10 episodes of the new drama Beyond available across digital platforms with the premiere on Jan. 2.