Page 57 - AIB | The Chanel | Issue 1 2012

a foregone conclusion that we are
going to see a similar outcome here
to the one that has already been
determined in Sweden. If
broadcasters create a second screen
experience that lives on every
device, every digital platform, then
the success will come just as a by‐
product of the fact that it is
available everywhere. It wonʹt
necessarily be very reliant on calls
to action. For example, on a normal
TV show, like ‘The X Factorʹ, there
would have been an enormous
lightning strike of interactivity that
was tied to the main vote window
of the show within the show,
whereas what we are now seeing is
a much larger, longer tail build‐up
to the event itself, and then a longer
tail post‐event. And we are
encouraging broadcasters to think
about interactivity in three stages:
pre‐event, during the event, and
post‐event, which in itself is
changing the very nature of the
content they are creating.
Itʹs really important that you
donʹt just rely on the TV show itself
as the main point of reference for
engagement and interactivity. If
you are smart youʹll think very
carefully about how you develop
the format, such that the experience
with the brand could live very
much outside the broadcast
window and that way you can
generate ongoing engagement, you
can also build very compelling
sponsorship or advertising
products around it as well. The only
real movement I have seen in this
We built a
solution
that
means
broad-
casters
don't need
to engage
with
operators
“
ww
w.migcan.com
space has been from productions
like Channel 4ʹs ʹThe Million
Pound Dropʹ in the UK. Shine
Productions recently bought Bossa
Studios, a social games company that
has produced the Monstermind
Facebook app. This is the first time
that I have seen evidence of a
traditional production company
starting to take this whole
opportunity really seriously.
Is the production industry taking
note?
At the moment we are hosting
workshops with our broadcast
partners about ʹThe Gamification of
Interactive TVʹ, we are trying to
help people understand that it is a
very different type of experience
that people will fully engage in
now. Paying for a digital
interactive product like a vote is
not necessarily as compelling as it
used to be so you have to start
thinking about what other
products can be offered into the
experience that creates value. So if
itʹs a music show, can you build in
music downloads; if it is a game‐
based show, can you create a game
experience that might have a dual
track opportunity to win, in very
much the same way that your
contestant on the TV show itself
does, and so on.
How do you get mobile operators
on board?
The good news for broadcasters is
we built a solution that means they
donʹt need to engage with
operators. Our platform talks to
mobile operators in 44 countries
globally, Facebook is plugged in so
thatʹs 800m users that we can
monetise, we are plugged into
iTunes so thatʹs another several
hundred million users. You could
argue this platform gives you
coverage of probably 60‐70% of the
worldʹs population.
What's on the horizon?
We all pretty much know whatʹs
going to happen on the device side
‐ all device manufacturers are now
entirely focused on building super
computer smartphones and tablets.
The biggest thing to happen over
the next 24 months would be that
the broadcasters themselves take a
very different approach to how
they commission TV programmes
for this new technology. I can say
from experience that a lot of the
production heads and
commissioning editors do not
fully understand what this
opportunity is.
They need to educate themselves
and commission at least with three
to four months advance planning in
order to create a high value
experience for the consumer across
all possible platforms.
Our research says that if
broadcasters are willing to invest in
this area then the returns could be
big. And we try to make it easy for
people to step into this space to
seize that opportunity.
Thank you, Barry Houlihan.
THE CHANNEL | ISSUE 1 2012 | 57
▼
Left Barry
Houlihan
Top right Bossa
Studios’
Monstermind app
Bottomright
Shine Group CEO
Elisabeth
Murdoch
MOBILE | THE CHANNEL