Glance Based Viewing
The Second Screen and Periscope
At Startup Grind last week, Claire McHugh was discussing her companies (Axonista) path from beginning to current position. It was fascinating and I really enjoyed it. If you haven’t heard their story, I’d really recommend you check it out.
Something got me thinking during the talk. The adaptation of the second screen during TV viewing. The ability to interact over media or purchase directly whilst viewing is massive. It’s powerful and I can see why Axonista is gaining so much traction. Making TV interactive changes the game.
When I look at how I and the people around me view content, it’s changed drastically over the last few years. Here’s what I see:
What It Used to Be
In the last 10 years, the family would huddle over the TV screen and await their TV show to be aired. The cups of tea brewed, the snacks ready — it was the family movie time etc.
The key is that it was the family that had to be ready for the show, not the show ready for the family. The family didn’t choose when the commence the viewing, the TV network did. The show aired at 9:30pm on Sunday and that was that. The family had to get prepared to view it on time.
What It Was Not so Long Ago
A few years ago, the TiVo’s and Netflix this changed everything. We have Kevin Spacey running around shouting…
“Give people what they want, when they want it, in the form they want it in, at a reasonable price, and they’ll more likely pay for it rather than steal it. Well, some will still steal it, but I believe this new model can take a bite out of piracy,” Kevin Spacey
The control was back in the viewers power. They decided when, what and where to watch the content. If the studio or network didn’t provide it, they were circumvented and obtained over pirate sites.
What is happening now
The last year or two the game has changed again, only faster. Now we have couples, families or basically anyone watching TV using only glances. They are not committed to the show.
The cinema is still the only sanctuary where all mobile phones are turned off and the attention fully granted to the movie.
Instead now, it works something like this:
- Quick 10 second glance. Does this look interested?
- If not, straight to mobile phone or tablet. Find or browse.
- Glance again a few minutes later. Has anything interesting happened?
- If it is, continue to watch until you’ve lost engagement.
The content is tested multiple times by the viewer. If it’s not throughly engaging, it’s dropped and nearest device snatches place. We don’t even know we’re doing this, it’s complete auto pilot.
The second screen product sits perfectly with this. If they’re not engaged in the show, engage them in the content or product on the screen they’re on. Perfect positioning.
The Future
The lack of commitment and attention is why YouTube, Periscope and other content networks are becoming the front runner. Shows on average are about 10 minutes, not 45–60 minutes. This sits with the current attention span people are willing to give.
That’s another key element. It’s not that we’re loosing attention span or our brains no longer have the capacity to pay attention for 60 minutes, it’s that we are extremely precious of our time. We decide instantly now if we want to pursue this show or not. We don’t turn around to our spouse after 60 minutes and say “I’m not getting that hour back”. We stop watching after 3 minutes.
The content is also becoming less production based. There’s a feeling of less professionalism in how it’s created which is passed on to the view and how it’s watched. Let’s take Snapchat and Periscope for example. When viewing content on these, whilst throughly engaged you are drawn towards the amateur feeling of them. That if I didn’t give it my complete attention, it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. It’s feels like more dispensable content but extremely raw.
I’m looking forward to seeing where this will go in the next year but one thing is for sure, it’s no longer about the big companies. People care about short, raw and engaging content.
