Digital Media & Entertainment

It’s not social media, 4k, or DVRs – and it’s definitely not 3D or second- screen apps. It’s the one thing that gives television its lifeblood and is the backbone of its DNA: TV’s very own programming – its CONTENT.

It’s about real-time storytelling across platforms and devices harnessing the power of social signals from the web and enabling multi-platform experiences.

The seventy-four year old medium has proven itself to be both timeless and resilient because it continues to evolve, adapt and, most importantly, innovate.

Would this be Facebook's counter attack to Twitter's growing popularity as a Second Screen social TV tool?

"what stood out was the ability for users to save ads" - nice idea, but to call this a game changer goes a bit too far for me!

QR codes are dying in their current form, it's time for something more intuitive, instant and robust!

The entire process is far too lengthy to be successful. First, an individual has to locate the QR code, take out their phone, make sure their app is up-to-date, scan the code, and wait for the page to load. At this point, their mind has already moved on to checking Facebook, updating Twitter, or texting their mom.

"The growing use of tablets and smartphones coupled with application and sync technologies have opened up new avenues for TV programming and product advertising'' said Jean-Michel Masson, SVP Watermarking Solutions, Civolution. "We are very excited about our partnership with Vetrya. Together we have demonstrated just how simple and cost effective it can be to deliver a profitable and compelling second screen app which is a market-proven avenue to engage viewers online.

A great culture starts with a VISION or mission statement.

And  while a vision articulates a company's purpose, VALUES offer a set of guidelines on the behaviors and mindsets needed to achieve that vision.

Of course, values are of little importance unless they are enshrined in a company's PRACTICES. If an organisation professes, "people are our greatest asset," it should also be ready to invest in people in visible ways.

No company can build a coherent culture without PEOPLE who either share its core values or possess the willingness and ability to embrace those values.

Any organization has a unique history — a unique story. And the ability to unearth that history and craft it into a NARRATIVE is a core element of culture creation.

PLACE — whether geography, architecture, or aesthetic design — impacts the values and behaviors of people in a workplace.

NPD’s latest report suggests that tablet shipments will grow 67 percent this year to 256.5 million and will reach a massive 579.4 million in 2017. In contrast, laptop or notebook PCs will decline 10 percent over the same period, dropping from 203.3 million to 183.3 million.

Augmented reality needs an app that easily generates 3-D content and exports it in major supported formats. Think “Draw Something” meets iMovie, in 3-D.

Recently YouTube crashed through the one billion unique users per month mark,

Video is clearly what people want on their TVs, so pay TV providers have turned their attention to tablet apps. Instead of shipping expensive set-top boxes, service providers want people to use tablets to find movies, see what friends are watching and browse their favorite programming.

The apps will add to the enjoyment of watching TV by providing player stats in a baseball game or actor bios and behind-the-scene clips from the users' favorite shows. These apps could yield be a goldmine of subscriber data that can be fed to advertisers who could then turn around and use the information to target advertising.

"The TV needs to be more like a docking station," Paul Gray, analyst for DisplaySearch, an NPD company, told me. "It needs to play nice with these mobile devices."

TV makers will look for ways to add value after the use of second-screen apps become mainstream.

"We're thinking about how to let an animated character from a film exist off the screen in the world," says Miesnieks.

"How to let your physical toy come to life, and how to make people's favourite game avatars step out of the screen into the real world. We want to create an entirely new type of game. Something that's never existed before."

Great Business Intelligence article on why Cross-Screen marketing will become a Game-Changer...

Click here for the PDF version of this report→

How can the Smart TV (and game console/streamer box/Blu-ray) environment be rationalized so there are fewer SDKs to develop for.

Television makers have the option to maintain their own apps environments and/or back a shared SDK. Some people think HTML5 will provide the standards foundation for a ‘write once, publish everywhere’ ideal for apps developers. But there is a growing view that Google with Android, Microsoft with Windows 8 or even Apple with iOS could grasp the opportunity to become a universal OS that could sit across different makes of television.

Swedish Radio have launched a second screen campaign allowing people to use their tablet, mobile or laptop to promote the interaction and sharing of their programs while they are still on air. 

Ebay may open its wallet to the virtual currency Bitcoin.

Within the next five years, Bitcoin or other virtual currencies, such as airline miles, could be converted to cash and used in retail, Donahoe said. Integrating such virtual currencies into its payment network would help eBay in its effort to push PayPal use at bricks-and-mortar retailers, rather than just online.

The business model around Second Screen engagement requires to be complementing and revolutionary. Starting from the cinventional models of online and TV advertising will be a good start, but don't cling on to these too much as 2nd Screen is capable to provide much more measurable, monetisable and valuable data.  

Google half full Glass for me...