By Reyne Rice, ToyTrend Analyst and Trend-Spotter, New York, New York
First posted on the YourToyCom.com blog forum and community website serving the toys, games and childrens’ technology industries, on behalf of the Spielwarenmesse. Spielwarenmesse is the leading and largest International ToyFair in the world, held annually in Nuremberg, Germany in early February.
A currently evolving trend in home entertainment and media viewing is the use of internet-enabled devices to allow consumers to stream their content on multiple screens simultaneously, thereby “Media Stacking” their experience.
The 2nd Screen viewing experience defines the use of a primary larger screen (for example, for multiple family members to share a viewing experience on the family TV screen), while each individual viewer may be monitoring or engaging with a second screen simultaneously (usually with a tablet or smartphone). This behavior of screen-stacking or media-stacking is an evolution of our multi-tasking society.
Here are some stats to ponder:
- More than 80 percent of US smartphone and tablet owners use these devices while watching TV.
- At least 25 percent of US smartphone and tablet users use the devices while watching TV multiple times per day.
- 51 percent of those who post on social media while watching TV do so to connect with others who might also be watching the same thing.
- 24 percent of Facebook users report posting about the movie they’re watching (in the theater!).
So, the second screen viewing has begun, but smart marketers have yet to implement tools for engagement, that will overlay marketing programs targeted to viewing habits and favorite media brands. There are a plethora of second-screen engagement companies popping up that are planning to entice consumers by connecting specific experiences on the second screen that are not available on the first screen. Some of these marketing and integrated enablers include GetGlue, Shazam, Viggle and Zeebox. Their goals are to connect big-screen consumption with small-screen activities, for an enhanced and personalized consumer experience.
These customized experiences won’t stop when you turn off the TV, since embedded information may provide wireless alerts later, when your 24/7 smartphone or tablet companion device provides coupons or other shopping experience connections, based upon the activities you engaged in, while TV watching.
Lance Ulanoff, Mashable, states that, “Twenty-four-seven entertainment and branding will be the norm in 2013, though you won’t always be aware the connection between what you saw on your first and second screen at home and what your smartphone is telling you as you pass the local Wal-Mart”(or local retail establishment).
We can expect more of these technology trends to have tie-ins to kids and familyapplications in 2013, since the dizzying array of new innovations in tech will continue to influence and change the way we interact with our devices, with each other, and with the world around us.