Ster-Kinekor Theatres and Prezence, continuing their long-term digital partnership, have announced the launch of an entirely new Ster-Kinekor app for Windows Phone.
For the past eight years Prezence, one of South Africa’s leading mobile, apps, and digital agencies, has worked with Ster-Kinekor producing award-winning, engaging digital products for customers of the entertainment giant. The latest output from this alliance is an entirely redesigned version of the award-winning and popular with consumers Ster-Kinekor app.
The app will boast an entirely new user interface (UI) designed specifically for the Windows Phone operating system, designed in partnership with Nokia. In addition to that, this latest version of the app will complete the mobile ecosystem on which the Ster-Kinekor app is available.
The current version of the app has won a slew of awards including Bookmarks and Vodacom Appstars on the local front along with Davey and Africacom awards on the international front. In 2013, with it having been available for download across all a number of mobile platforms for just under a year, it also surpassed the 1-million download mark.
Lynette Hundermark, apps business director for Prezence explains the decision to launch a new version of this successful app saying that with it now being some 18 months old is in need of refreshing.
“In addition to the general sense that a new and refreshed UI was needed, the growing popularity of this Windows Phone platform made it perfect for the latest iteration of the app,” Hundemark says.
Amongst South Africans, statistics from mobile phone operators have shown soaring subscriber uptake of the system. Between May and July of 2013, Vodacom reported a 47% increase in the number of users opting for Windows Phones, making it the number one growing platform amongst South Africans.
“The user experience of the app was designed with input from Windows’ design team hence it will seamlessly evoke the clean, flat, minimalistic look endemic to Windows Phone. In terms of new features, this new app will also be fully integrated into the Windows Phone operating system and will soon have Live Tile capabilities.
“We have many new features planned for this app. But till then, all the features in the original iteration of the app, viewing movie trailers, booking tickets, accessing entertainment news and the like will still be available on this version,” Hundermark continues.
As an innovator in the digital and mobile sector, Ster-Kinekor made its debut in the app space back in 2011 on Nokia’s Symbian platform. The entertainment giant has now come full circle and concludes its dominance of the mobile ecosystem again in partnership with Nokia, now on the Windows Phone platform.
“Ultimately, like the original, this new version of the app is about providing real value for the end-user. With these apps actually having a slew of functions and day to day appeal and usefulness, they not only build brand loyalty, but also serve the core of Ster-Kinekor’s business aims,” she concludes.
