CHICAGO — A Chicago start-up creating a fantasy sports space for reality TV fans is celebrating after the recent launch of its mobile app.
Bracketology.tv launched its new mobile app for iPhones and Android before the latest season of The Bachelor. More than 30,000 people have downloaded the app so far and more than 20,000 Bachelor fans signed up.
"So essentially, it's like your college basketball brackets meets fantasy football. But for the Bachelor, Survivor, Big Brother, RuPaul's Drag Race," CEO Jonah Fialkow said.
Within days of launching the app, Bracketology.tv was on the top 25 chart for entertainment on the iOS App Store.
When Fialkow and Kaitlyn Hurley, Bracketology.tv's co-founder, wanted to build an app, they started fundraising in Chicago and then worked with a development team in India to build the apps.
"It's entirely free to play always, the base service always will be," Fialkow said. "Our main mission is to connect reality television fans and we don't want to make people pay as like a barrier to entry for that. So it's entirely free to play."
Players can join a public league, a sponsored brand league, or a private league, just like a fantasy football or basketball league. Players can also submit their lineups in the official leagues for each show to see how they do across the platform.
The platform offers four game types: advanced, first impression brackets, week to week and confidence pool.
- First Impression: This is like a basketball bracket. You set your picks for the full season after watching the first episode.
- Week to Week: You make picks weekly and choose who will be advancing after the next elimination ceremony.
- Advanced: You select a team of contestants and win or lose points based on what they do and say. These are picked weekly.
- Confidence Pool: You pick weekly and choose who will advance at each elimination ceremony and get points on how confident you are they will advance.
Right now, the points for each game are tracked and entered manually by Fialkow and Hurley.
"So actually watch every episode of every show we provide fantasy games for with my Excel spreadsheet of all the rules, and I'm marking down at minute 14 Daisy said the word connection like there's three points for her," Fialkow said.
While they are entering points for all of the shows, Fialkow said they still have some room to grow and add more shows.
"We will continue to add," Fialkow said. "I'm not at my max bandwidth yet. We will continue to add shows. We actually this year, we're going to be doing the Oscars for the first time. We're going to do a one-night Oscars pool."
In addition to expanding to an award show, Fialkow said they are looking at possibly adding a cooking show and some more staple shows.
"We're likely looking at expanding into the challenge and some sort of cooking show at some point this year, potentially," Fialkow said. "As well as adding some more staple shows. The goal is to continue to expand our show offerings for sure. To continue to support reality TV fans and of all shapes and sizes."
The success of the app launch is just the beginning, Fialkow said, and the brand is working on some strategic partnerships.
"Every time we have a new milestone, it's just the beginning," Fialkow said. "I truly believe it. I really think this is just the beginning and I'm not gonna get bored of seeing what 2024 has in store for Bracketology."