Increasing Number of TV Viewers are Busy with Multiple Screens

  • Due to the growing popularity of tablets, smartphones, laptops and other devices, TV audiences are becoming increasingly busy interacting with other screens while watching their shows.
  • According to a Harris Interactive survey, more than half of Americans surf the Internet while watching TV, forty percent visit social networking sites and 37 percent are busy texting.
  • Marketers can take the distraction and convert it to an opportunity by embracing “distraction media” as a tool for supplemental or enhanced consumer engagement.
  • Examples of current transmedia successes include the TV series “Eat St.” that has its own iPhone app featuring location-based vendors on the show — and Old Navy, that has commercial spots allowing smartphone users to buy the clothes being featured or download the song being played.