When a ratings company can find ways to increase engagement for clients, it becomes a whole new level of service. Well, that’s what’s happening with Nielsen’s Media-Sync Platform, which offers up an innovative Sync App for ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy and other clients. The enhanced viewing experience, “Grey’s Anatomy Sync App for iPad,” which launched in February, has been nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Creative Achievement in Interactive Media.
The app provides fans of the show with the ability to interact with exclusive content in real-time using their iPad. “We’ve also launched an app with The Weather Channel – The Peter Lik Companion iPad App for the program “From The Edge With Peter Lik,” Nielsen’s Marisa Grimes tells RBR-TVBR. “We expect to announce the roll out of new apps in the fall.”
We also asked Grimes: How are the show interactions measured and reported to clients? “Media-Sync is actually not intended to be a measurement product. However, we are able to track usage of the app and aggregated data on what features are being accessed the most. ABC owns that data.”
Here’s a demo video of the Grey’s app.:
The app allows the show’s fans engage with social networks and to seamlessly interact with specific moments in real-time during the program. In addition to exclusive companion content like polls, trivia, behind-the-scenes insights, production details, character bios, video and photo galleries, users are also be able to “check-in” to virtual environments within episodes such as riding an elevator with “Dr. McDreamy.” Users can then share their experiences with friends and other fans of the show through their Facebook or Twitter account.
In addition, users have the ability to interact directly with a sponsor’s ads through trivia and links to advertiser websites. Lexus was this season’s presenting sponsor of the Grey’s Anatomy Sync App.
The Media-Sync Platform is born from Nielsen’s joint venture with Digimarc Corporation. The platform relies on audio watermarks already inserted into nearly every TV program in the U.S. as part of Nielsen’s TV audience ratings service. Interactive advertising modules are also available as companions to the ads on the big screen. This capability gives viewers the opportunity to dive deeper into TV ads for products that interest them and gives advertisers a powerful new way to extend the effectiveness of their TV ad buy.
RBR-TVBR observation: With all of the news we hear of multitasking TV viewers, this app serves to “rein in” some of these multitaskers while they have iPads sitting on their lap and watching TV. Talk about upping engagement and ad effectiveness as well – this is immersion. Interactive TV that syncs in real time with programming and advertising – that closes the circle on many levels, and that interactivity is measureable and reported to Media-Sync clients.
