I attended the Social TV Summit in Los Angeles yesterday. (Actually, it was held at the Bel Air Country Club, but that's another story.) As the summit's title suggests, it was a day spent listening and talking about how social media is intersecting, enhancing and altering television viewing, media and advertising. It was a great conference and hit a hot topic at exactly the right time.
Noted media economist and co-host Jack Myers grabbed everyone's attention with his opening remarks, boldly predicting that social TV marketing would be an $8 billion to 12 billion annual market by 2020. While I haven't fully gotten my head around those numbers yet, Jack is a good friend and has been extraordinarily accurate in his macro market projections over the years, so I'm inclined to believe them, particularly when you consider them within the context of the $40 billion to 50 billion annually which he has previously forecast for all of social media marketing by 2020.
Where will all of this money come from? Here are some of my thoughts:
First, what is social TV? While I don't think you can really nail down a great definition of social TV at this point, since it's so nascent, I view it as all of the activity occurring at the intersection of social media and television devices and programming. It includes second screens used while watching TV, networked companion devices that support or relate to TV, social tools and applications on connected TVs, and all of the TV-related content and conversations on social media.
TV viewing plus Web and social use is big. Users spend an enormous amount of time surfing the web while watching TV. 78% of users do both at least monthly, and one-third of all Web browsing occurs in front of a TV.
Companion device usage while watching TV is big, too. 35% of tablet and iPad usage occurs in front of the television, and this is before we really have that many robust and specialized applications to truly enhance or support better TV viewing experiences. Many (including me) predict that app-enabled iPhones, tablets and iPads will be the dominant "remote controls" for home television in a few years.
Strong measurable linkage between TV viewing and social media expressions. Companies like Blue Fin and TrendRR are doing incredible things bringing Web-like Big Data crunching visualization to TV-related social expressions. Now, marketers and their agencies can know exactly what and how many social expressions their TV ad impressions generate.
Lots of new TV-related social tool. Check-in tools have become big in location based services. Similar tools are now available for TV viewing. Services like GetGlue and Miso are helping TV networks and programmers establish loyalty-based relationships with their viewers, enabling them to "check-in" while viewing, earn badges and even get show stickers sent to them in the mail.
Will this add up to $12 billion annually in nine years? I don't know, but I do think that it's going to be really big. What do you think?
COMMENTARY: Turns out that June 2011 was the top month for social TV.
The most social shows on TV aren’t necessarily those with the highest Nielsen ratings. That’s the big takeaway from a new research study from TVGuide.com, which ranks the most social TV shows from the 2010-2011 television season.
When we look at TV ratings, it’s almost always in the context of what programs have the most viewers. Historically, this is a useful metric for advertisers, but as traditional television viewership (and even ownership) continues to decline, it’s more important to track users’ engagement with programming, especially across social sites.
The rankings, which are based on TVGuide.com episode checkins, Facebook Likes and site comments, offer an interesting look at not only what shows are most social, but also how viewers really use social media to interact and engage with their favorite shows.
Top 10 Most Social Shows of the 2010-2011 TV Season
1. NCIS
2. American Idol
3. Criminal Minds
4. Glee
5. House
6. Fringe
7. Bones
8. Castle
9. Smallville
10. Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Although some of these shows, like NCIS and American Idol, are also extremely popular in the Nielsen ratings, that isn’t the overall rule. Programs like Glee, which have huge social media followings and a great web presence, barely rank in Nielsen’s Top 40.
Smallville, a program that is wrapping up its tenth and final season, has a tremendously strong social fanbase, despite being one of Nielsen’s lowest rated programs.
How Users Engage With Social TV
Beyond simply looking at which TV shows are most social, TVGuide.com also researched how viewers use social TV. In the past 12 months, we’ve seen a wave of second-screen experience apps appear for devices like the iPad, encouraging users to engage with social media while watching the show live.
According to TVGuide.com, Twitter leads Facebook when it comes to engagement while a show is airing. Fifty percent of users said they tweet about the show they are watching, compared with only 35% who said they post to Facebook.
Christy Tanner, general manager and executive vice president of TV Guide Digital, will discuss the TVGuide.com report at Mashable Connect Friday in her presentation, “The Truth About Social TV.”
Courtesy of an article dated June 22, 2011 appearing in MediaPost Publications Online SPIN and an article dated May 13, 2011 appearing in Mashable
Affiliate Marketing, thanks for the nice comments.
Posted by: Tommy | 12/29/2011 at 05:37 AM
Thanks for sharing your experience about Social TV Summit in Los Angeles. Very necessary topics discussed about on that summit. I think new marketing track is challenging and great.
Affiliate marketing
Posted by: Howard Stuart | 12/29/2011 at 04:13 AM