‘Hang w/’ mobile app connects celebrities with fans via live-streaming chat
The new mobile app “Hang w/” is taking other social media vehicles by storm. The app transforms your cell phone or tablet into a live broadcasting social media tool, allowing users to “hang with” celebrities and each other via live-streaming video and chat, creating broadcasts that link straight to the app and also to your Facebook wall. Lippencott Alpacas “Hang w/” was created mainly to help celebrities and other users with large followings to build interactive social media relationships with their friends or fans. With “Hang w/,” users can follow celebrities or other people who interest them, and notified when that person broadcasts live. “It connects thousands of people simultaneously by allowing anyone on the platform to broadcast live,” said Hang With Inc. co-founder and CEO Andrew Maltin. “It’s a hard concept to understand until you use it, but once you do, you’ll realize that there are no time zones. Some people are eating breakfast in the morning, some are out partying at midnight, some are in class at 2 in the afternoon. “But it’s all happening right now, and I can be in all of those places at the same time, chatting with them, asking about their day, listening to their music and just being with them.” The average user can upload dozens or even hundreds of broadcasts every day. Users can share every aspect of their lives with others, and many users comment on and view the daily lives of others. “Hang w/” was developed by MEDL Mobile Inc. to create a more powerful social media platform for celebrities to utilize. Fan engagement has become a popular topic among Hollywood executives and other social media companies who are seeking interactive engagement between celebrities and fans. The “Hang w/” platform has appealed to more than 100 celebrities, including 50 Cent, Ali Landry, Cheech and Chong, Kaskade, Larry the Cable Guy, Lucy Hale, Terrell Owens and Timbaland. “There’s something amazing about being ‘with’ your favorite celeb while they are broadcasting, being able to chat and share in the experience as it happens,” Maltin said. The “Hang w/” app prides itself on not being fabricated or ran by a social media team. Real celebrities are interacting with fans, and this is something we know is real because the user can see it live. Through Facebook or Twitter, who knows if it’s actually the celebrity interacting with you? “We developed ‘Hang w/’ to create a more powerful form of social media – one that can’t be faked or fabricated,” Maltin said. “We wanted to enable people to literally be ‘with’ each other, all around the planet. We believe that life is better when we are with each other live.” The “Hang w/” app has been gaining popularity and recently passed the one million download mark. Statistics were released last week showing “Hang w/” engages fans up to 250 times more than leading social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter. The amount of users who tune in to a celebrity’s broadcast were compared to the followers that like, favorite, retweet, comment and share content of the same celebrities on other social media platforms. Many new updates and projects are coming from Andrew Maltin and the “Hang w/” app, including a concert sponsored by South by Southwest with rapper 50 Cent headlining March 11, live-broadcasted by the “Hang w/” app, connecting celebrities with fans through a live-stream and simultaneous chat. Fans will get an intimate look backstage with 50 Cent, as well as exclusive access to his concert and new material. Group broadcasting, private messaging, new channels and more celebrities are coming soon to the mobile app, which will only increase its popularity. Maltin and his team are working to help users find things that interest them to better the app.
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