The foundations are being laid for a dramatic change in television viewing that will take the passive out of couch potato.
Imagine social-networking features that allow people to chat with friends during a program. Messages would appear at the bottom of the television screen.
Social networking features may let friends message one another
Or how about an interactive ad where a click will take a viewer to a Web site with more information or the option to purchase a product?
Home shopping channels might be so interactive that viewers could search through product lists and select the items they want displayed on their screens.
All this will be possible within the next 12 to 16 months, says Edgard Villalpando, senior vice president at ActiveVideo Networks, a private company developing software to make the television interactive. The San Jose company’s combination software and service works in conjunction with the set-top boxes consumers gets from their cable operators.
Already ActiveVideo has contracts with Oceanic Time Warner Cable in Hawaii and Grande Communications in Texas for home-shopping services.
“The big trick is how you monetize this,” says Villalpando. “The monetization all comes down to advertising.”
The shift in the television viewing might so dramatic that in two years programming itself could change. Production costs are likely to fall and some on-air segments could compress from 30 minutes to 15 minutes.
Producers also may choose to air some television series for four weeks instead of the typical 13 weeks, says Villalpando. With interactive television, audience feedback can be very fast.
