What we watch shapes how we watch

Data released by Twitter recently has shown how the type of content we are watching can impact our second screen social media activity. For example, if people are watching a gripping drama like Homeland, they are far less likely to tweet at the same time. On the flip side, if it’s a light entertainment show like X Factor, people will consistently tweet throughout the show with peaks in Twitter activity directly linked to specific contestant performances. Meanwhile investigative shows like Panorama stimulate prolonged Twitter activity with viewers discussing it during the show but also after it has finished.

The report is targeted at advertisers however it also contains valuable information for the wider TV industry; consumers no longer just passively watch TV, Twitter adds a new dimension to the viewing experience. We are likely to see more TV shows actively encouraging viewers to go online whilst the show is on.

Broadcasters already trail hashtags before shows, but this is just the start. They are now using Twitter to evaluate the performance of shows, and it will be fascinating to see how this data is used and impacts programming and additional, associated content in the future.

Would Twitter be 'poorer' without TV?

Twitter’s sales director, Bruce Daisely, recently said that Twitter would be “poorer” without TV.  Up to sixty per cent of Twitter users in the UK use it while watching TV, with 40% of peak-time twitter use being related to TV. These figures reinforce the view that social media can coexist with TV and add value to it.  Mr. Daisley is right to say that Twitter complements TV, rather than competes with it, but his claim that Twitter has become an EPG is a little far-fetched.  While Twitter may be good at spreading word-of-mouth recommendations about certain shows, this is very different to the social media network actually acting as an EPG.

Despite that, there is a point to be made here, and it’s one I’ve made on this blog before: while content is still king, finding the right content is becoming more difficult as the number of channels and sources of media grow. Traditional recommendation engines can only help this to a limited degree, because they are typically designed to cope with the viewing habits of one individual and not a household of people with different tastes and demographics.

Social media services like Twitter offer the potential to give real-time recommendations from a group of people that you trust, although there are still limitations to this: of the people in your Twitter feed, how many do you really care about in terms of their TV-watching habits? There are ways of addressing this by having circles of friends, in the way that Google+ does, but the current social media services don’t really handle this well.  There is potential here, but that potential hasn’t been realised yet.

Smartphone growth provides Connected TV and second screen opportunities

Nearly half of the UK now owns a smartphone. What’s interesting about the smartphone adoption rate is the pace at which it has accelerated (31 per cent in 2012). An increasing number of us are using these devices to access online content and we’re using them more often. This increase also represents an opportunity for the Connected TV market.

One of the longstanding criticisms of the Connected TV market is that these devices are often purchased and then not used to their fullest extent. Connection rates of TVs are slowly increasing although this remains an industry challenge, better consumer awareness, improved OTT content and better user interfaces are all needed. The growth of the smartphone market also presents opportunities for the Connected TV market; second screen applications can significantly enhance the Connected TV experience.

Touchscreen Smartphones are ideal for searching TV listings, scheduling recordings and managing the main TV without disrupting what’s being viewed. Live and recorded content can also be streamed to these devices as we’ve shown with our own ANT Galio Move.  

At this year’s IBC we demonstrated a range of new ANT Galio Move features that enable consumers to interact with social media and access additional associated online content such as iTunes, YouTube and Wikipedia based on what the consumer is watching. As smartphone and tablet adoption rates continue to grow so does the second screen opportunity for the connected TV Market.

UK digital TV switchover signals the end for Ceefax

The final analogue transmission in the UK took place last month. A decade into the new century, Britain’s airwaves are finally a digital domain. Ceefax was switched off as the final analogue signal was turned off in Northern Ireland.

This UK TV landmark highlights how much has changed in the 38 years since Ceefax launched. At its peak Ceefax had 20 million viewers a week and its switch-off will be greeted with some sentimental sadness. Many will fondly remember anxiously waiting for a Ceefax page to change to get the latest football scores for example.

Today’s TV user experience is very different, football updates are available instantly across multiple devices and goals are streamed straight to mobiles and tablets as soon as the football hits the back of the net. Rather than waiting for a match report after 90 minutes, sports fans have access to social media providing minute by minute updates live from grounds around the country. Consumers have the ability to tailor their service to meet their personal needs.

Connected TVs along with tablets and smartphones are undoubtedly improving the way consumers watch and interact with live sports although we’ll miss Ceefax a little bit too!

It’s Official: Sport is Social

The British public is embracing second screening as part of their everyday viewing habits. According to Sky, 75% of people now watch TV with a second connected device in hand. During the Olympics, over 150 million tweets were posted, making it one of the most talked-about events ever on Twitter. It confirms that big sporting events trail only breaking national news for stimulating social networking.

Now, social networking sites are not only being used to discuss programming, but to choose what to watch too. 24% of 18 to 24 year-olds use Facebook and 9% use Twitter to find something to watch on TV. Remarkably, over one in ten of us are now turning on TVs because of what we’ve seen on social media.

According to Broadband TV News, BBC’s iPlayer received a record 196 million views over the Olympics, with almost a fifth coming from mobile and tablet devices. This, along with the Ryder Cup, has given sport 30% of the online viewing market.

Sport is reacting to this too. The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is the world’s fastest growing sport, and this could well be down to social media and second screening. For example, Head of UFC’s parent company, Dana White, has over 2.2 million followers, and before the main fight, on pay-per-view, supporting events are shown live on Facebook. Sport has always engendered debate, something which second screening and social media can only help to grow. In the weird and wacky world of professional wrestling, WWE recently acquired social networking site Tout, and now regularly uses content from Tout in its broadcast programming.

All of this means sports fans and content providers are using multiple platforms to source, consume, and enjoy more entertainment at once. In this regard, sports content is ahead of the market, but it will surely only be a matter of time before other content providers start to integrate further in this way.

Second screening becomes big business

24% of people are using second screens whilst watching TV, and almost half of all 16-24 years olds use social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to discuss what they’re watching, according to new stats in Deloitte’s new report.

Viewers are interacting directly with the programmes they’re watching, but they’re also increasingly talking about the content within the programme with their friends on social media networks. There is a real opportunity here from those broadcasters and advertisers that react quickly to this growing trend. Advertising specialist YuMe, has stated there is a window of opportunity for them to pitch their wares to a growing connected TV audience, as for now they will interact with the ads out of a simple curiosity.

To make of the most of this, advertisers should therefore be leading the way for consumers, providing interesting and personalised content so that when they do go online using their connected TV, they have something compelling to interact with.

There’s also a huge opportunity for manufacturers to get involved here, and we are seeing a growing number of companion apps becoming available that consumers can use to interact with their favourite TV shows. Integrating social media networks into the viewing experience for example, means viewers can be more engaged with their favourite TV shows, following the relevant hashtags on Twitter and discussing with friends online. 

These latest stats show viewers are becoming more accustomed to using second screens and interacting directly with the programmes that they’re watching. So faced with a more switched-on connected TV audience, the onus is firmly on the TV industry to create a converged first and second screen experience so compelling that it could potentially have more impact than a single screen experience.

“Chatterboxing” set to be the norm

More and more people want to interact with the content they are watching and feel connected to their TV. If that was not already accepted, then the recent TeleScope report published by TV Licensing should help to convince the doubters. The report covered over 2,000 UK adults looking to take the pulse of the nation’s viewing habits. One of the headline findings is that over a quarter of those people (26 per cent) said they now use multiple devices whilst watching television.

The practice of using smartphones and tablet devices to comment on television in real time has been dubbed “chatterboxing” in the report, and if the growth of social networking sites and sales of such devices continues, then it is inevitable more people are going to want to interact with content in this way.

For instance, if a soap show or a football match is on the box, you can bet at least one aspect of the content will be trending on Twitter. People are watching their televisions and reacting to what they are seeing on social networking sites via their smartphones or tablets. TV shows are already creating their own hashtags to compliment what is being transmitted. Look at something like Question Time, interaction with the audience at home is now done via social networks. It’s almost completely replaced the concept of texting or calling into the show.

The key to this shift in consumer behaviour will be to rollout connected TVs with the ability to work in unison with other devices such as smartphones and tablets. At the moment these are treated as independent devices but the viewing experience of the future must enable these devices to 'talk' to TV’s, delivering a more personalised viewing experience for the consumer. This is something we looked at in our ‘Predictions for the year ahead’ blog.

Whilst for some this may be seen as a big investment for the TV industry to meet, the TV Licensing report shows it should be a financially rewarding project for them. Chatterboxing is actually encouraging people to watch scheduled TV. A quarter (24%) of social media savvy adults covered in the report, aged under 35, watch a programme live, rather than on catch up, because they enjoy being part of the related social media chatter. One in five (19%) are more likely to watch something as it is being shown on TV because they are worried ‘social media spoilers’ will ruin the ending.

If this heightened interaction and the risk of ‘spoilers’ encourages more people to tune in at the scheduled times, then it should help broadcasters to sell advertising space for higher rates. All of which will trickle through the industry helping everyone to benefit.

However, to ensure this opportunity is seized upon, content providers and device manufacturers need to work together to create further options and make sure interaction between the viewer and the broadcaster is taken as far as it can be. TV is such an important part of today’s social behaviour and the onus has now been placed on the TV industry to deliver a converged TV experience that embraces new viewing trends.

TV viewers have their say – social media and the Royal Wedding

Everybody’s talking about it, so it seemed like we couldn’t really avoid a mention of tomorrow’s Royal Wedding on our blog. With the nation gearing up to tune in to the nuptials of Kate and Will, how we’re all going to get in on the action has been a hot topic for discussion. Social media is set to transform the viewing experience, with a Facebook page and a YouTube channel giving well-wishers the chance to ‘watch and react’, post messages, and even upload their own videos.

When Charles married Diana in 1981, it’s estimated that more than 750 million people tuned in worldwide. So with today’s technology, and the huge amount of investment from broadcasters to give the public as much access as possible to the celebrations, it’s anyone’s guess as to how many people will be watching tomorrow. But what’s really going to set this viewing experience apart is the opportunity for people to get involved from the comfort of their living rooms. It’s a little bit of TV history in the making.

With our TV’s becoming digital entertainment hubs, and an increasing number of services converging from the web to our television screen, tuning in to an event like this is no longer a case of sitting back and absorbing. The rise of the connected television, providing users with access to more traditional ‘web’ applications like YouTube and Flickr and greater engagement with the content they watch, has transformed the TV experience from passive, to interactive. With TV innovation evolving at an exciting pace in an increasingly connected world, we wonder what we’ll be able to do from our TV’s at the next Royal Wedding!