We tweeted a link to this article the day it was published, but we're so excited about it, we figured a few extra words were worth sharing here.
AdAge reports that the pop cultural gurus over at Entertainment Weekly are getting ready to launch their own social TV venture, dubbed Viewer, which will allow television fans to talk about what they're watching with fellow fans and EW editors while they watch. We're eager to see the plan in action, particularly since AdAge reports that TV fans will be able to "time-shift" dialogue if they're not watching a show live, a terrific bonus for those interested in seeing what others are discussing during a show hours or days after its original airing.
Here's the text of the article from AdAge (which you can also view by clicking here):
"Entertainment Weekly plans to introduce an interactive section on Monday that will let consumers discuss TV shows with editors and friends while they watch. The section, called Viewer, will encompass a wide range of series including "The X-Factor," "The Walking Dead," "Dancing with the Stars," "Vampire Diaries," "Glee," Sunday Night Football, "Pan Am," "Modern Family," "Terra Nova" and "Survivor."
"Co-viewing or social TV, as the concept is variously called, has been around for a while in various forms, most frequently as live blogs and chats, not to mention frequent, sprawling conversations on Twitter. ABC and Bravo have also introduced interactive apps meant as companions for viewing.
"Entertainment Weekly, part of Time Inc., hopes its Viewer platform can marshal bigger co-viewing crowds by letting consumers filter whose comments they see, invite friends to the conversation and time-shift the dialog if they're time-shifting a show.
"It's not certain how big social TV will become, or how quickly it will grow, but the Viewer platform in particular could play to EW's strength as a venue for pop culture fans. "I hope that people see it as a natural extension," said Bill Gannon, managing editor at EW.com and a former director of digital media at Lucasfilm. "We're trying to create a new social media platform. To be honest with you I think it's going to take a while for us to find out how successful or how popular it is."
" 'Everyone understands that this is an experiment and it's an experiment worth taking,' Mr. Gannon added. "This is what we need to do to keep Time Inc. and EW current and fresh."
"Entertainment Weekly's tech provider on the platform, i.TV, is bullish on social TV. "Our sense is that it will be a multi-billion-dollar platform, social television at large," said Brad Pelo, CEO at i.TV.
" 'The human behavior pattern has changed such that we're now very comfortable using our digital devices while watching television,' he said. "The opportunity is very latent and large, because we are used to being more engaged. Television is no longer a passive experience."
"Entertainment Weekly is separately encouraging readers to "check in" to TV shows using the GetGlue platform."
As far as interactive television strategy goes, this is a great move for Entertainment Weekly, a brand already adored by hard-core TV fans. If it works, EW could gain a relatively early lead in the iTV game.
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Will Keller, President, Interactive TV Commerce, is the go-to expert for t-commerce sales strategy and execution. For more iTV insights, subscribe to Inside the Screen or follow him @iTVcommerce.
A good overview of how an added value like Wi-Fi on planes moves from a differentiator to a common amenity. Questions to be thinking about? How will airlines tackle their pricing structures? Perhaps tiered pricing for shorter hauls or flights less frequented by business travelers? Most compelling over the medium-term is the ability to combine inflight entertainment with internet accessibility. Airlines aren’t going to abandon their costly IFE infrastructure anytime soon. So consider the possibilities for more transactions – products and services – in the sky with airlines taking their small but profitable share.
See the full article here.
Will Keller, President, Interactive TV Commerce, is the go-to expert for t-commerce sales strategy and execution. For more iTV insights, subscribe to Inside the Screen or follow him @iTVcommerce.
OK, I’ll admit it. I set my alarm and got up ridiculously early towatch The Royal Wedding. But even though I was a bit bleary eyed, I knew my stuff because I had prepped by checking out not one but four (trust me there were even more!) Royal Wedding apps on my iPad.
So what did I learn? More about jewelry and dresses and the Middletons than I could possibly absorb. But the ability of the iPad apps to display beautiful still images shone through: I wanted to linger over the incredibly large jewels. (It brought me back to my HSN days, though those jewels were “faux”.)
The apps – particularly the NBC and BBC version – helped whet my appetite for the live viewing experience. And without really thinking about it, those were my two go to networks for the event itself.
Now during the event, none of the iPad apps beat my 60 inch screen for capturing the spectacle. I occasionally perused the apps but more because it’s my job than because I needed to. The dual screen rate was also likely dampened by the extended commercial free presentation of the wedding ceremony itself.
Given the modest viewership for the wedding itself (so solid bump ups considering the time of day), I’d think twice before creating one-off apps like these. Better to develop an app that builds viewer habits over time.
Will Keller, President, Interactive TV Commerce, is the go-to expert for t-commerce sales strategy and execution. For more iTV insights, subscribe to Inside the Screen or follow him @iTVcommerce.