Interactive TV News Round-Up (II): Canoe Ventures, Coincident TV, DirecTV

Submitted by tracyswedlow on March 3, 2011 - 11:58pm

--Canoe Launches Facebook Fan Page

--Coincident TV Powers Interactivity for ValleyGirl.tv

--Report: DirecTV to Launch Premium VOD Service in Late June

Because the [itvt] editorial team has been busy this week working on the TV of Tomorrow Show 2011, we are covering recent news in round-up/summary form. We anticipate that it will take us a couple of days to catch up with all the news we plan to cover: so if your company has sent us a press release or briefed us on an announcement, and you don't yet see your news covered in this issue, please bear with us.

Canoe Ventures--the company founded by US cable MSO's Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cablevision, Cox, Charter and Bright House Networks to develop a national cable platform for interactive TV and advanced advertising--has launched a Facebook fan page.
Coincident TV--a San Francisco-based start-up which offers a solution, called the CTV Experience Builder Suite, that it bills as enabling broadcasters and programmers to "create, deliver, and measure platform-neutral, immersive, interactive video experiences across digital devices" (note: for more on the company, which last year was nominated for an Interactive Media Emmy for its "Glee Superfan Experience," an interactive video player it created for the Fox primetime show, "Glee," and which has also created interactive video experiences for MTV, among others, see the interview with its VP of content, Matt Apfel, that was published on itvt.com, July 20th)--is powering interactivity for the video blog, ValleyGirl.tv. The interactive version of the vlog (located at http://valleygirl.tv/interactive/) presents viewers with pop-up icons that allow them to access thematically related Web sites and video, and also offers social media integration. According to an email to [itvt] from a Coincident TV (CTV) spokesperson, the project showcases: "1) Video bloggers using CTV to increase customization and engagement. 2) CTV pop-ups cued by video events, adding value to the interview experience. 3) YouTube hosting video in a custom non-YouTube environment. 4) Using CTV to re-imagine how a video experience works in the context of a Web site--Web links and Web videos look clean, are seamless, no new tabs, and the video is always the key media."

DirecTV is in "advanced talks" with major Hollywood studios to offer the first implementation of premium VOD, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday. The service would charge DirecTV subscribers around $30 to rent a movie 60 days after its theatrical release (i.e. at least a month before it became available on VOD). According to the Times, DirecTV is planning to launch the service by the end of June with movies from 20th Century Fox, Sony Pictures and Warner Bros. Walt Disney Pictures is also said to be in discussions with the satellite-TV provider about the new service.

North America