IBC and Broadcasters - Multiplatform Apps - Threat Or Opportunity?

Excerpt:

"Multiplatform?

Let's look at some data from appmarket.tv. According to Nielsen's recent survey of nearly 12,000 connected device owners, 70% of tablet owners and 68% of smartphone owners said they use their devices while watching television, compared to only 35% of eReader owners. And 61% percent of eReader owners use their device in bed, compared to 57% of tablet owners and 51% of smartphone owners.

Couple that with the fact information technology research company Gartner predicts that well over 200 million tablets will be sold by 2014, and by 2015 more than one-third of American consumers (and likely Europeans) will use a tablet PC, says firm Forrester Research. Triple that even with Coda Research Consultancy predicting that worldwide sales of smartphones will total 2.5 billion units throughout 2010 to 2015.

Companion Apps

Generations Y and Zed are ripe for early adoption. But companion apps, synchronised with TV programming is the future – where viewers not only interact with TV but also take it one step further and really learn by engaging in trivia quizzes, predictions, voting, and other game mechanics. And they won't have to do it alone — the virtual communities around the shows will allow for cooperative experiences as well. The main stumbling block with broadcasters is their lack of agility in terms of decision making and propensity in keeping everything close to hip and internal. Rather than opening up to 3rd party innovation and creating open standards.

While broadcasters seem to sit on their hands and mull over the second screen interaction with TV, carriers like Vodaphone and Orange are trying to own that spot with companion apps on the second screen with Social TV Apps, content producers are writing new formats that integrate tightly with the second screen so they can try and own that spot (as well as creating connected TV apps on the single screen for VOD), CE manufacturers like Samsung and Toshiba who make tablets are trying to marry it tightly and offer API's and SDK's to third party developers to co-own that sweet spot, third party developers in the USA like Miso, Philo, Tunerfish, Getglue and Intonow are trying to own that space by building Social TV on Apple and Android tablets and smartphones — Google TV wants a piece of the action with Android and Chrome plays on TVs, smartphones and tablets, Apple is in the fray and likely to tie in the iPad and iPhone with a consumer TV play soon as rumours have it..."

via appmarket.tv

Posted via email from Siobhan O'Flynn's 1001 Tales