Who needs to work with whom?
Successful iTV requires change. Change in the way that programmes are commissioned by broadcasters. Change in the way that programmes are made. Change in the way that advertising is sold. The old linear model of broadcast TV will not yield the results that iTV is capable of. Currently, a broadcaster decides on a style of programme it wants to transmit. Programme makers are then told what to produce or they pro-actively tout completed concepts to several channels at once. Once the programme schedule is determined, sponsors and advertisers are sought. Advertising is often sold as a whole campaign targeted at a specific but very high-level segment.
Broadcasters now have the opportunity to use interactivity to really start to understand their audience’s wants and needs. Advertising space will achieve a premium rate if the interests of the audience are better understood and can be targeted. By using interactivity, broadcasters can target segments of decreasing size to differentiate their offering to advertisers. Ultimately, they can even begin to influence audience behaviour.
So how do they do that then? Instead of following the traditional linear model, broadcasters would work together with programme makers, advertising agencies and advertisers to make integrated interactive concepts in a highly collaborative and perhaps iterative way. Interactivity becomes a fundamental part of the programme, rather than an afterthought, and is designed to enhance the entertainment,