Interactive Television Network Programs Take Off
Want to order the pizza on that TV commercial you are watching? Soon you’ll be able to get it delivered by simply pressing a button on your TV’s remote control. Sound too good to be true? A handful of WebTV-using San Franciscans have already done it. It won’t be long before you can too. Advanced television interactivity is rapidly becoming a reality. In this column we’ll take a brief look at some of the exciting new interactive TV programs that are now available. You’re probably well aware of convergence technology: the integration of PC and TV hardware, software and services. But for the most part, the end product had been stuck in the realm of dreams and drawing boards. In the last year these dreams have become reality. The television and computer have finally come together. The evidence is seen in the wide range of smart television appliances that are finding their way into our living rooms, and by a new generation of television programming that the networks are serving up. Get ready for a glimpse of the first wave of interactive programming. In order for a TV program or commercial to be interactive, viewers must be able to send and receive information pertaining directly to the broadcast show. Typically, interaction comes in the forms of viewing extra content, polling, making purchases and in the case of game shows, competing against other contestants. Interactive television currently embodies two forms. Some have differentiated these as either "enhanced" or "interactive," but we think these designations are not clear enough. We refer to them, instead, as either one-screen or two-screen interactivity. One-screen interactive television seamlessly integrates standard television shows with Internet content into one screen. Interactive data and graphics are embedded into the broadcast signal and then typically displayed over or along side of the broadcast image on the TV screen. Viewers can interact with the television program using their remote controls to click icons that appear on the screen. In order to receive interactive programming, viewers need to have tuners capable of decoding the embedded data. Though some use proprietary technologies for decoding, tuners using the ATVEF (Advanced Television Enhancement Forum) standard will become more common and will accelerate the consumer’s exposure to interactive programming. ATVEF-compliant tuners are currently found in WebTV Plus units, and likely will be available in iWink, OpenTV and AOLTV set-top boxes , some digital cable boxes, satellite receivers or. Unlike one-screen interactive television, two-screen interactive TV requires access to a computer with an Internet connection in the same room as the television. While viewers watch the broadcast show on a television set, they interact with the program using their computers and the Internet. Following are several programs that currently offer interactive content. Judge Judy Interactive Judge Judy has gone daily with its one-screen interactive programming. Now viewers can chat with other fans, vote guilty or not guilty, get background information about the case and make purchases online five days a week. Wheel of Fortune & Jeopardy These two popular game shows are naturals for interactivity since most that watch the shows, play along anyway. Viewers who want to enjoy one-screen interactive competition can match their wits against the studio contestants. Beat the buzzer and you can win actual prizes-all in real time. Documentary Channel The Documentary Channel (DCH), set to air in late 2000, is an all-digital network that will air interactive documentary films, many of which have never been broadcast before. Viewers will be able to access the Documentary Channel through digital cable, provided by local cable companies, a satellite service (DirectTV or EchoStar) or by visiting the Documentary Channel Web site (www.documentarychannel.com) to view the streaming content. Both MSNBC and PBS’ The MacNeil-Lehrer Newshour now offer interactive news. MSNBC offers 24-hour interactive broadcasts, enabling viewers to chat, get local news and weather updates and participate in on-line polls. PBS features nightly interactivity for The Newshour offering a chat forum, polls, direct feedback and links to more in-depth reports. MTV Fans Riot to Get Online Last Fall MTV aired a new music trivia game show called WebRIOT. This interactive game show lets about 50,000 at-home viewers play along with the four in-studio contestants and one at-home contestant by logging onto the Web site www.webriot.mtv.com Fox Family Channel Fox Family Channel has also announced two new television shows that will air on its new Live and Interactive series. The two-screen interactive format will allow at-home viewers to participate and influence the outcome of the live, coast-to-coast shows, through Internet and telephone connections - and it’s all in real time. Paranoia, which launched in April, is a game show that pits in-studio contestants against at-home participants. Fox’s other experimental show, Liquid Soap, features former Seinfeld star, Jason Alexander. This half-scripted, half-improvised soap opera spoof will allow the at-home audience to develop the story line. Liquid Soap will debut in early July. Not only will viewers be able to interact with these shows, they will have the ability to directly influence their outcome.
www.judgejudy.com
www.jeopardy.com
www.wheeloffortune.com
Enhanced News
www.msnbc.com
www.pbs.org/newshour
www.foxfamilychannel.com
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