HitBliss was an online service that consisted of two applications: HitBliss Earn and HitBliss Store.[1] In HitBliss Earn, users opted in and selected targeted ads to consume on their own schedule. In exchange for their verified time and attention, users received payment.[2] Earnings could be used to purchase entertainment (e.g., movies, TV episodes, and Pandora One Subscriptions) via the HitBliss Store application.[3] Users could stream movies and TV shows in HitBliss application. The service is available to subscribers in the US, UK, Canada, and Australia, as well as other countries.[4]

HitBliss
Type of businessPrivate
Type of site
Streaming media
Founded2008; 16 years ago (2008)
Headquarters,
Founder(s)Sharon Peyer
Andrew Prihodko
URLwww.hitbliss.com
Current statusDefunct

Formerly, it competed with Hulu and Netflix, but the company stated that their video on demand (VOD) application was an effort to prove the viability of the HitBliss earned-payment method. The HitBliss earned-payment method was positioned as an alternative to credit cards or PayPal so that consumers could purchase a variety of items, including apps, games, and music, with their earned cash.[5] In September 2013, HitBliss announced an agreement with Pandora Music, which allowed HitBliss users to purchase $3.99/month Pandora One subscriptions with their earned-cash.[6]

HitBliss had deals with three film studios (Warner Bros., Paramount and Universal) as well as Starz to offer Hollywood movies in the DVD/transactional VOD window and EST TV episodes the day after they air.[7]

The company was based in Lexington, Massachusetts, USA and was founded in 2008 by Sharon Peyer and Andrew Prihodko.[8] HitBliss was privately backed by Alpond Capital.[9]

On 6 May 2014, HitBliss wrote on their blog that the service will be suspended while post-beta preparations are completed. Users who had a current balance were given the option to redeem their account balance as an Amazon Gift Card that was applied toward movies or videos.[10]

References

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  1. ^ Fiegerman, Seth (March 1, 2013). "HitBliss Lets You Pay for Movies and TV Shows by Watching Ads". Mashable.
  2. ^ Osborn, John R. "Waste-Free Ad Spending: Hitbliss' Dramatic New Business Model". MediaPost.
  3. ^ Boehret, Katherine. "Trusty Viewers Get Free Video With Ad 'Work'". The Wall Street Journal.
  4. ^ Carmody, Tim (2013-03-01). "With HitBliss, viewers earn money for 'free' movies and TV by watching personalized ads". The Verge. Retrieved 2023-01-04.
  5. ^ Colao, J.J. (March 1, 2013). "Watch Ads, Get Paid: Is This The Future Of Ad-Supported Content?". Forbes.
  6. ^ "Pandora". Hitbliss.com. Archived from the original on 2013-09-15. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
  7. ^ Carmody, Tim (March 1, 2013). "With HitBliss, viewers earn money for 'free' movies and TV by watching personalized ads". The Verge.
  8. ^ Edes, Alyssa (March 19, 2013). "Lexington start-up pays users to watch targeted ads". The Boston Globe.
  9. ^ Giardina, Carolyn. "HitBliss to Launch Movie and TV Streaming Service". The Hollywood Reporter.
  10. ^ "Hitbliss beta update/". Hitbliss.com. May 6, 2014. Archived from the original on June 5, 2014. Retrieved June 20, 2014.
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