Electronic Retailer - February 2012 - 37

of multiscreen viewers – people working on laptops, mobile or some other interactive device while watching television – is contributing to the success of iTV. Also, the availability of iTV is spreading to more service operators through cable set-top boxes. So while consumer interest grows, availability grows and technology advances, the days of ordering a product through the television – without the need of a phone or internet – are drawing closer. “Eventually people will be able to do almost anything through their television sets,” Kennedy says. “T-commerce will become more prevalent and networks could become like mini shopping channels.” One of the major players in making iTV possible is Canoe Ventures. Canoe, founded by the six largest cable companies in the country – Cox Communications, Cablevision, Time Warner Cable, Charter Communications, Comcast and Bright House Networks – is combining the impact and reach of traditional TV with new technologies and marketing solutions that will better connect consumers with brands. The idea behind Canoe and interactive TV is “to enhance TV so experiences on TV could be expanded and more deeply immersive for the viewer,” says David Grabert, vice president of marketing communications at Canoe. The company is accomplishing this task by offering relevant advertising as part of the experience. The company’s model is to sell the technology to programming networks, who then sell advertisement time to the marketers and advertisers. Through this collaboration, Canoe’s footprint in the interactive television arena reaches 23 million households nationwide. Control is a growing trend among television viewers. Kennedy believes that video on demand (VOD) is a format that will take off in 2012 as a viable vehicle for DRTV advertisers. VOD is a part of the increase in appointment viewing, meaning consumers are picking what to watch and when. Discovery Communications reaches more than 45 million households via VOD networks. “Many networks have free VOD services for their most popular primetime programs,” she says. “Viewers

have embraced VOD so much this year that the increase in viewership has kept some networks from canceling some primetime programs.” In some cases, audiences have increased 4 percent for some primetime broadcasts.

Technology Update
What is in store for the future of iTV? A lot of it depends on the developments in iTV technology in 2012. One company at the forefront of iTV technology is FourthWall Media. FourthWall makes the interactive software that exists in set-top boxes. Currently, the company is a provider for millions of homes and contributes to iTV in three ways, the first being the delivery of interactive applications. The second role FourthWall plays is producer of bound – inserted into a broadcast – or unbound – completely independent of the programming – AdWidgets. In addition, the company collects data from the set-top box for more targeted marketing. FourthWall Executive Vice President Patrick Peters sees iTV as a way for television to catch up with the successful data collection that has historically only been available for web ads. “Once we can track usage the way we do on the internet now, everything is more accountable and, therefore, more effective,” he says. This is good news for direct response marketers, who depend on metrics. “What we’re working towards in 2012 is a universal TV buy button, so regardless of content, I can insert the button into a basketball game or something like that,” Peters says. Then, with just the click of a button, the viewer will be easily and seamlessly able to purchase a product. More than 15 million households are currently exposed to the interactive TV landscape through Comcast Communications. Right now, a lot of Comcast’s advertisers are using what is known as the request for information (RFI) application, in which the viewer is exposed to a traditional 30-second spot and, in the middle, a graphic overlay comes up and asks if the viewer would like more information on a product or service. Then, that RFI is filled through snail mail with a coupon or brochure as indicated by the advertiser.

Other technology offered by Comcast includes Remind Record, where a promotion for a program pops up and reminds a viewer to watch or record that program. “This is valuable for programmers because their success is measured on ratings; plus, this could spark a growth in audience and scaling,” says Kevin Smith, vice president of digital media at Comcast Spotlight. In addition, Comcast offers VODT, or video on demand telescoping, which is when the viewer can then opt to link to a longer format piece that includes interviews, trailers and exclusive footage while watching a linear spot. Though all of this technology is still in the early stages, Comcast is already running hundreds of campaigns for advertisers in all categories including entertainment, automotive and retail. But Smith sees these new applications as “the heart of convergence” between traditional television advertising and DRTV. On the advertising end of the technology, Canoe is prepared to expand in two ways in 2012. First, the number of homes in which iTV technology is available will expand – it’s currently at 51 percent of the digital cable households in the country. The footprint will get larger as more networks are added, offering advertisers a wider reach of viewers. The second expansion will be towards in-program interactivity. Canoe is testing out interactivity such as trivia and polling. For example, if a viewer is watching a cooking show describing how to make pasta, advertisers could participate in polling that pops up and asks, “What’s your favorite pasta sauce?” “It’s a more immersive experience, and it can be up to the network, but it can be done with or without sponsorship,” Grabert says. The game could end with a clickable coupon or offer. Grabert says all of this iTV technology is paving the way for the future of television advertising. It’s easier for the consumer, and it’s easier for the advertiser. “It’s a whole level of measurement that advertisers are not used to getting with a broadcast ad,” Grabert says. “This is a truly competitive DM tool and TV has an advantage that other platforms don’t have.” 37

February 2012 | electronicRETAILER

Electronic Retailer - February 2012

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