The fate of the 12 remaining contestants on the U.S. version of The X Factor will be in the hands of the viewers starting Nov. 2., and they’ll now have a new way to support their favorite performer: Twitter direct message-enabled voting.
Though other shows have used Twitter to create buzz, The X Factor will become the first TV competition to tally DM votes to help determine a winner.
“The X Factor has raised the bar for innovative television with its use of Twitter,” says Chloe Sladden, Twitter’s director of content and programming. “We’re thrilled to see the creators of The X Factor push the envelope further by being the first television show to formalize this phenomenon through Twitter voting.”
Social media and technology continue to change the public’s TV-watching experience, but the evolution of social TV has affected competition shows the most.
For example, American Idol let viewers vote on the show’s Facebook Page during season 10. The Voice — a new singing competition that became a 24/7 social media conversation earlier this year — allowed viewers to vote by buying the contestants’ songs on iTunes. And design competition Project Runway let fans use Twitter hashtags to vote for a “Fan Favorite” every episode
The shows hope the new voting methods spark social buzz that will lead to better ratings.
“Launching touch screen voting on Verizon’s The Xtra Factor App and the new voting on Twitter is really exciting,” says the show’s star judge Simon Cowell. “I love that the audience has more and more choice in the way that they can vote.”
To vote on Twitter, viewers must follow @TheXFactorUSA and DM their votes to that handle. Regular tweets will not be tallied. The X Factor has set a limit of 50 votes for viewers voting on the show’s website and on Twitter, while voting via SMS, SMS in-app and telephone is unlimited.
For a full list of contestants’ Twitter handles, click here.
Chris Schreiber is director of marketing at social video advertising company Sharethrough. Before joining Sharethrough, Chris worked in the Global Communications and Public Affairs Department for Google.
Earlier this month, the advertising industry’s leading brands, agencies and technology platforms descended on New York City for Advertising Week to discuss how brands can effectively connect with consumers across today’s fractured media landscape. Participants analyzed the increasing role of brand content, the changing nature of content distribution and the complexity of measurement.
One particular observation emerged on multiple occasions: When it comes to how we consume media, we no longer live in a “linear” world.
People now move quickly and unpredictably between devices and media environments throughout the day. Therefore, content creators and brands are challenged to tell a story that unfolds in an intended sequence.
Brands and agencies are rearranging many of the core components of their programs to be able to thrive in this non-linear, distracted media universe we now inhabit.
Here are five key ways advertisers and brands are changing it up.
1. Switch to Non-Linear Storytelling
Non-linear storytelling is becoming much more popular with brand content creators. Take the granddaddy of all non-linear brand content campaigns, Old Spice’s “Response” videos. No matter which video you start with, you’ll be entertained and hooked into watching more of the videos.
Given that consumers can discover content in so many different ways, brands need to create content that can stand on its own, even if it’s part of an episodic series.
Another interesting example of this type of approach is Audi’s new campaign, “Untitled Jersey City Project.” The series was shot in the style of a TV thriller, with eight unique episodes of interconnected cliffhangers that, nonetheless, are not designed to be viewed in a linear manner.
2. Restructure Operations Around Content and Sharing
Brands are working harder to create genuinely entertaining content that consumers will choose to watch (and hopefully share). Agencies are creating new positions and departments to ensure this content is succeeding; for example, “earned media directors” devote themselves to achieving real results for brand clients with earned media. Coca-Cola has even created company roles dedicated to ensuring “content excellence.”
The University of Phoenix, one of the nation’s largest direct response advertisers, has broadened its web content programs and is now producing content to supplement its advertising programs and engage audiences.
3. Rethink the Purchase Funnel
Advertisers are realizing that the purchase funnel is no longer a linear process. The Internet makes so much information available – both through our social connections and the 24-hour news cycle – that the traditional sequence from awareness to purchase intent is often truncated, with consumers bouncing back and forth across the purchase funnel.
To better understand these changing dynamics, advertisers are implementing new methods of digital research to measure their campaigns’ social engagement, and its effects on brand metrics. Emerging digital measurement companies such as Vizu, as well as established players such as Nielsen and comScore (who both introduced new social measurement products within the last quarter), are helping brands access this deeper social activity data.
Neville Manohar, head of digital marketing, credit card and analytics at Chrysler Group, spoke to this trend during Advertising Week. He noted that immediately following last year’s Super Bowl ad featuring Eminem, the company witnessed a flurry of social engagement that far surpassed its expectations. The activity helped change how Chrysler views the purchase funnel when it comes to digital advertising.
4. Facilitate Content Discovery
Search is a linear process: You want to find out about something, you search for it online. If, along the way, you come across an advertisement for what you are looking for, you click on it. However, as social media becomes a more dominant vehicle to experience web content, we come across advertising in a less linear fashion. In fact, the starting point for many people when they jump online is their news feed, where they can discover content friends have posted and find new stuff that interests them.
Rather than forcing products and services on a consumer, advertisers are turning to distribution models that facilitate content “discovery.” StumbleUpon‘s new “Paid Discovery” advertising model illustrates these new types of offerings by allowing a brand’s site to be the content that users discover and interact with, whereas before, ads appeared ahead of content.
5. Focus on Evergreen Entertainment
Advertisers are now considering whether the traditional campaign-based advertising approach is the right way to build a brand in today’s media landscape. Consumers fluidly switch between their computers, TVs, mobile phones and social platforms, making it very difficult to guarantee reach with a single campaign.
On the other hand, this new non-linear climate allows for a deeper and longer level of consumer engagement than the typical television commercials of past.
Heineken, in conjunction with AKQA, recently launched the revolutionary “Heineken Star Player” iPhone app, which allows fans to interact in real-time with the UEFA Champion’s League action. Not only does the app provide a novel, interactive addition to the sports viewing experience, Heineken has also succeeded in creating an entirely new environment in which fans spend a significant amount of time.
The woman who started and managed Google‘s blogs will now be shaping Twitter‘s voice.
For the past nine years, Karen Wickre has been senior media liason at Google, where she built the now more-than-150-strong Google blog platform. Here’s how she described her role in the blogs in a 2007 interview with SearchEngineLand:
“I shepherd them. I call myself the managing editor, and I’m the gatekeeper for the new blogs. I’ve been with Google a long time and have worked in publishing a long time, so I can’t help but pay attention to the words — to the ways in which Google is communicating with the world.”
Wickre also launched Google’s official Twitter presence, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She announced Tuesday on her personal blog that she would be crossing over to work for the microblogging platform.
“I’ll be working closely with the marketing & comms teams (and probably a few others) in a new role: editorial director,” she writes. “As you might guess, it will involve a fair amount of wordsmithing as well as nurturing a consistent Twitter voice across our public messages and information pages.”
As wordsmiths ourselves, we can appreciate the potential of Twitter’s blog. Despite generating boatloads of interesting data that has inspired many analyzing tools, the company only adds a handful of posts each month — many of which are focused on product features or company milestones.
It’s hard to believe that a mere three months ago, Netflix stock had reached its all-time high at $300 per share. After Monday’s announcement that the company lost over 800,000 subscribers due to its price hike, the stock took a sharp dip.
Here we look back at the events that contributed to Netflix’s sharp downturn.
Do you think the brand retains enough industry clout to survive? What should Netflix do to turn the company around? Sound off in the comment section below.
Hulu inked a five-year deal with The CW on Friday, giving the streaming site access to next-day content from five of the six major networks.
Starting “later this year” (Hulu declined to get more specific), Hulu will begin providing next-day content from shows like Gossip Girl, The Vampire Diaries and 90210, among other shows.
Subscribers with Hulu Plus will see that content the next day; those who get the free Hulu service will see it eight days after the content airs. Hulu Plus costs $7.99 a month.
With The CW on board, Hulu Plus is now offering next-day content from all the major networks except CBS. Hulu’s proposition and its pointed emphasis on next-day content is intended as a stark contrast to Netflix, which got access to past-season content for CW shows earlier this month.
What do you think? Will next-day CW content persuade you to sign up for Hulu Plus? Let us know in the comments.
Google’s smart TV software platform, Google TV, is poised for its first significant overhaul since it launched in Logitech and Sony hardware a year ago. Via over-the-air updates that should begin streaming to hardware devices on October 30, Google TV users will find new TV-optimized Android Apps, an improved YouTube experience, and new features that provide easy, direct discovery of TV and movie content.
All this Googly goodness is wrapped up in a new user interface that aims to simplify a challenging information design—a design that has left many Google TV customers with a persistent sense of yuck.
On Monday, Netflix reported losing more than 800,000 subscribers since the company announced a 60% price increase, which went into effect in September. If you’re one of these Netflix customers who couldn’t seem to rationalize the hike, you’re probably exploring other options.
A few years ago, our only option was to drive to the nearest Blockbuster or Hollywood Video, only to be subjected to ironclad late fees and out-of-stock titles. Now, with a multitude of popular online streaming services, our favorite movies and TV shows are just one click away. From Amazon Instant Prime to Blockbuster On Demand and VUDU, more and more companies are providing viable streaming alternatives.
Luckily, most of these sites offer free trials without any obligation to sign up. If you’re still not sure which service is best for you, take a look at our gallery below to compare your options.
On Thursday, the city and Comcast Corp. said Comcast’s advanced fiber network is being expanded into parts of the Innovation District that aren’t reached by the company right now.
With the recent opening of our Dublin Lab and the impending launch of Palo Alto, it’s a good time to take a look at progress since we started @dogpatchlabs a couple of years ago.
Some interesting numbers from across the 4 Lab communities:
To date, over 350 emerging companies have been residents.
Right now, there are more than 70 teams in the Labs.
Team quality has never been higher & incredibly-interesting stuff is being worked on. The waiting lists in each location range from over 60 to over 100 interested teams.
About 100 total DPL companies — or about one third — have received funding. Rounds have ranged from $100K to $10M.
Over $140M in capital has been invested in @dogpatchlabs companies.
So far, 14 more companies have been acquired by the likes of Google, Facebook, PayPal & others.
So far, Polaris has invested in a little over 10% the total teams funded. That ratio feels great.
Why?
Well, @dogpatchlabs is — and always will be – an “open source” founder’s community.
What does that mean, again?
That means that we believe that a fundamental part of Dogpatch’s value comes from catalyzing connections between innovators & their peers, advisors and investors. Lots of entrepreneurs & their friends. Polaris’ network. Other networks. And other investors.
So what does Polaris get out of Dogpatch other than some really interesting investment opportunities?
Lots. We measure progress by asking several questions:
Is each @dogpatchlabs a really strong community, with residents, mentors & investors supporting each other? Is each a “magnet” for great – really great – new & repeat entrepreneurs?
What quality of ideas are we seeing? Are we getting a great chance to build relationships with the next generation of great talent?
Are we contributing to a richer, deeper ecosystem in each community we participate?
Is there a good ratio of financings & acquisitions to companies selected for residency?
Are we building deeper, lasting relationships over a “rational” period of time with entrepreneurs we find to be compelling?
We think results are strong in each of these areas. That said, lots of room to grow further.
We’ve put a lot of emphasis on building strong @dogpatchlabs communities. For the last two years, each of the three U.S. locations has been quarterbacked by a lead Polaris partner (i.e, Ryan Spoon in SF (now Palo Alto), Peter Flint in NYC, me in Cambridge & Dublin.)
Beyond us, our other Polaris partners spend a significant amount of time in each community.
And beyond physical expansion to four Labs, we’ve also expanded the Dogpatch leadership team by hiring three great entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIR) over the past year: Gus Weber in Cambridge & SF (now Palo Alto), Matt Meeker in NYC, and Noel Ruane in Dublin.
Each of our EIRs have been great entrepreneurs and/or technologists themselves. And they’ve made a tremendous impact in taking the Lab communities to the next level.
As example, in Cambridge, Gus Weber has done an incredible job partnering with the broader tech ecosystem. He’s brought over 35 events (skill share classes, open angel forums, speakers on various topics, and other networking events) into the Cambridge Lab over the last several months. Such events help build a community culture internally, support the growth of companies, create external awareness for what we are building, and support the “open source” model by ensuring that the community at large is welcomed and engaged with the @dogpatchlabs community.
On more than a dozen occasions over the past several months, we’ve shared the @dogpatchlabsmodel with representatives from other regions, government agencies, and universities.
Gus, Matt, Ryan & Peter have each done an incredible job building relationships with other important players in each market’s Innovation Community. Groups like TechStars, MassChallenge, 500 Startups, StartX, AngelPad, NYC Seed Start and YC.
Dogpatch is attracting very high quality, repeat entrepreneurs that have typically shied away from traditional incubator/co-working type spaces.
The quality of folks & their ideas is staggering.
That said, when we forge an investment partnership with entrepreneurs, it’s not only about quality — but quality of match. Our Seed investment approach is straight-forward:
A big, important idea with a great model and most of all, great team.
A great match for our interests, experiences and network.
And importantly — potential for synergy & partnership. We actively partner with each Seed company team. We work & support. We believe our most valuable contributions are experiences, networks, energy, & time. So we’re really thoughtful selecting opportunities where we can add value.
For us, Dogpatch has proven that it’s a great vehicle for building relationships with, and working closely with exceptional people.
For entrepreneurs, “open source” has proven to enable relationships to be built with a cross-section of investors, advisors and mentors.
We’re proud that Dogpatchers will tell all that we’ve been active partners in the goal to help everyone succeed (regardless of whether Polaris has invested in them). We’ve worked closely with folks working on really great companies to help them meet other investors & secure funding.
One of the things we’re most proud of – and what makes the @dogpatchlabs network effect work — is the sheer number of quality companies who’ve successfully secured funding.
Because a fundamental goal of @dogpatchlabs is to welcome & encourage connections between entrepreneurs, value-additive advisors and investors.
So far, so good.
Dogpatch gives Polaris another great view into the where/what/how compelling innovation is happening. Across 4 important and complementary markets.
Bottom-line, we’re early stage investors with a long-term view.
Building relationships & helping the community at-large helps make us better investors.
For partnerships today — & down the road.
Editor’s Note: David is part of the BostInno Insiders Network.
DirecTV debuted its iPad app in February with an impressive suite of remote control and content browsing options, but one of the few missing features was the ability to watch TV on it, which has now been added. Like similar apps from Cablevision and Time Warner Cable, v1.3.1 adds the ability to watch 38 channels live on the tablet, provided you're connected to the same home network as your DirecTV Plus HD DVR. That home restriction, plus being limited to only live TV streams and not DVRed programming separates it from Sling's apps, but at least it's still a free add-on. If you want to watch recorded shows or take them on the go you'll still need the Nomad box for that. Check below for a link to one of DBSTalk's usual thorough walkthrough PDFs breaking down the new features, a few screengrabs sent in by a reader, and the complete channel list after the break.