TV Apps - keeping the user’s attention

It was announced last week that android users would be able to start developing their own apps for Google TV, TV Apps are really starting to come into their own and are proving to be a useful way to get viewers to engage more with TV content.

A recent poll by Harris Interactive earlier this year indicates that as many as one third of all Americans multi-task while watching TV. While this may seem like bad news for advertisers, another recent survey by Nielsen has some good news for them.

The Nielsen survey indicates that interactive TV content actually encourages viewers to pay more attention to TV programmes and ads. Given the number of distractions faced by consumers, applications can play an important part in keeping the attention of viewers and in retaining their interest. There is a downside to this, however: viewers tend to stick to well-known brands in their choice of applications and are reluctant to try out new content, according to a recent report from Strategy Analytics. Even brands like Facebook are struggling to capture the attention of TV viewers with their TV apps.

So while there is a real struggle for brand owners to increase the use of their TV applications, there is real value if they manage to succeed. This may be an area where TV content providers with strong brands have a real advantage – successful TV applications will not only increase the reach of those brands in new media, but can also help retain the value of their content to advertisers by keeping their viewers engaged and interested.

TiVo Returns to the UK

Virgin Media’s eagerly anticipated TiVo set-top box was made available for pre-order last week, and it’s up take will be carefully monitored by many industry analysts. The set-top box will enable consumers to access an interesting mix of applications, content and services.

TiVo is a leading brand in the US, however its previous UK partnership with SKY in 2000 was short-lived. So Virgin Media will be hoping for a more positive response from the market with this new offering.

The TiVo service makes recommendations to viewers based on their previous programme choices. The new box also has a ‘Wish List’ feature where the consumer can add keywords and then all relevant programmes will be added to their personalised list. It also boasts an EPG that goes back 7 days, a feature that YouView also hopes to roll out in 2011. In a market where the level of media content is rapidly rising, personalisation is a key strategy in harmonising broadcast and broadband content for viewers. By working with TiVo Virgin Media is addressing this growing need for ‘personalised’ TV.

Virgin Media commented that the UK audience was perhaps not ready for the full internet experience on their TV screens, a concept that we’ve discussed many times on this blog – the internet experience needs to be tailored for the TV. Virgin Media appear to have addressed this by ensuring consumers can easily navigate the new user interface with preinstalled TV widgets such as YouTube, eBay and iPlayer.

TV viewers want more interaction

A recent survey from Ensequence has shown that there is an increasingly large demand for interactive TV features, especially amongst sport fans and reality TV viewers. The survey shows that 70% of sports viewers would like to interact while watching a sport event. And that 74% of reality viewers and 55% of drama viewers would also want to interact with content. (The full list of statistics can be found here).

TV viewers from a wide and varied audience are looking for more interaction with their broadcast content. Many viewers are also interested in interactive advertising with 73% saying they would like to interact with TV commercials for a product they are interested in using their remote control.

Service providers must respond to this growing demand. There are many new exciting widgets and applications available that need to be made accessible to consumers. Especially when the report shows that 45% of TV viewers said they would “likely consider” changing from their service provider if another one was to offer interactive TV as well as content.

By adopting a hybrid approach, combing traditional broadcast programming functionality with new dynamic online services, Broadcasters are able to deliver compelling interactive experiences.

Screen your calls

Verizon has launched a Caller ID application for the TV. The application which will be available on the FiOS TV platform enables TV viewers to see who is calling them in an information box in the corner of their screen. The information appears for several seconds allowing viewers to decide whether or not they want to pause the TV program and answer the call.

Caller ID is being implemented by an increasing number of operators and represents an opportunity to add value to an existing service in a competitive marketplace. It’s also another example of next generation widgets and applications being aimed at a TV audience.