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Overview

Key Marketing Companies have a "Prove It" Mentality toward Convergent Television Programming - They Demand Significant and Tangible Evidence that the Emerging Media is a Worthwhile Investment and Pursue Limited Activities Based on ROI Analysis.

Burnt by the '90s Internet Heyday, Marketers and Media Co.s took an overly cautious approach to convergent media opportunities. Marketers didn't want to repeat the Past Decade's Investment Blunders. They faced not only a Souring Economy, but also the Overarching Global Uncertainties Precipitated by the 2001 Terrorist Attack on the World Trade Center. These factors overshadowed Marketers' decision-making with regard to convergent television programming - in essence, anything "new" and evolving that required risk, an experimental mindset and dollar expenditures not attached to revenue, was pursued cautiously. Clients were consumed with Competitive Analysis and "0"-Base Thinking.

Progress in Convergent Television Programming & Advertising occurred only when Companies could point to specific and quantifiable results. Marketers were willing to participate in some activity, but it was a tough sell. Many Convergent Technologies Companies went under in the wake of this "over-rationalization" environment; however, for those with Solid Case Studies and Statistical Research Behind Their Applications and TV Properties, (and sometimes with the aid of free Trial Offers & Money Back Guarantees), Co.s were able to Make Limited Progress Developing and Distributing Convergent Technology Programming.

FOLLOW ME

Overview

Key Marketing and Media Companies Lead the Way in Defining the Communications Possibilities and Values of Convergent Television Programming.

Recognizing that Consumers were Creating and Adopting a New Interactive TV Medium in Advance of its Full-Scale Technological Deployment, Strong Leaders -- Co.s Like Ford and ABC/Disney -- Began Creating New Types of Programming which combined the media experiences of TV and the Internet. Empowered Consumers were Creating their Own Channels, Regularly Multi-tasking and Interacting with Programming; yet, Ratings were still eroding and TV Revenue Models were failing -- a Seismic Shift in Programming Content, Uses and Production Methods was necessary. Leading Co.s in these Industries formed Consortiums and Alliances to Develop Standards, Define the New Convergent ITV Medium, Create Best Practices and Pioneer Killer Apps. They Worked Collaboratively from the Onset to more Closely Integrate Marketing Messages with Programming Content. This helped to Reduce Risks associated with Spec Program Development and improved the Adversarial TV Production/Sales/Distribution Model Prevalent in the Latter Half of the 20" Century.

Convergent Programming Experiments of the late 90's and early years of the 21' century convinced Large Media Conglomerates that enhanced TV was the best defense against diminishing ratings and falling revenues. Marketers as well, found interactive television a strong medium with which to engage Consumers in deeper and more meaningful ways. In fact, Media Companies and Marketers, faced with the economic challenges brought by Audience Fragmentation and Diminishing Ratings began to collaborate more tightly in creating Television/Internet Programming. Championed by key industry leaders, this approach reduced the risk of producing programming on spec and supported the Marketer's efforts to speak to their target Consumers in "the right place, at the right time, with the right message."

Me TV

Overview

Consumer Uptake of Convergent Programming and Related Technologies Drives its Evolution. Media and Marketing Companies Respond to Consumer Usage of 2- & 1-Screen Platforms and a New Consumer Who Demands Interactivity.

Even as AT&T Postponed Deployment of the DCT-5000 Set-Top Box in 2001, Consumers Had Already Begun Adopting Convergent Media. An interesting trend grabbed the attention of Marketers and Media Companies - More Than Half (?) of PC Households in that Year had a Computer and TV Sets in the Same Room AND Increasing Numbers of People Were Using Both at the Same Time...often to Interact Online with Content Related to the TV Show They Were Watching. Essentially, Consumers were enhancing their own TV shows in advance of set-top boxes and the bandwidth enabling this over the tv set. Early Experiments in Developing Convergent TV Programming and Advertising focused on Genres with the Most Obvious ITV Needs -News Programming, Sports, Game Shows, Music, etc. Certain Subjects and Related Products within these Categories Dominated these Experiments - HealthCare, Automobiles, Financial Services/Products, etc. Between 2001 and 2006, "CTV" Programming (as well as Methods of Selecting It) became More Intriguing and Sophisticated. Agents Tracked One's Interests and Made Programming& Product Recommendations. Personal Databases, Managed by Agents, became an increasingly significant contact interface through which Marketers Negotiated and Interacted with Consumers. Consumers, in turn, managed relationships with Marketers more frequently via Agents -screening out irritating "junk mail" and directing searches on products that serviced their needs.

The Biggest Paradigm shift in the Convergent Programming Landscape Occurred on the Entertainment Side of the TV Spectrum. Since the 1970's, the Television Industry had followed a progressive path of declining ratings and profits even as the medium developed technologically and economically. Convergent Programming provided a "light at the end of the tunnel" - a way to engage & retain increasing numbers of channel flippers (and TIVO-devotees) as they created new revenue. Marketers enjoyed an opportunity to speak to self-selected audiences in greater depth, move directly from communication to transaction and advance the brand relationship in a highly accountable medium.