Nonprofit Technology Conference

During the past year we’ve seen multiple attempts by broadcast networks to integrate social media into television programming. You may recall ABC’s promotion of an app that provided broadcast viewers with synchronized interactive content for My Generation. Glee, which airs on Fox, also tried to extend the viewer experience from television to the Internet by integrating QR codes into commercials. Most recently, MTV and VH1 announced their partnership with Foursquare to bring in social gaming across television, online and mobile entertainment for a “heightened fan-experience.”

Double Feature

Looking at recent viewer usage statistics, it is clear that there’s good reason for this shift…

1. If you’re like most Americans, you spend on average 2.8 hours of television per day watching shows and consuming nearly 4.5 hours of video on YouTube as well as 3.1 hours of content on Hulu per month.

2. Odds are that you also own multiple devices that afford you access to video and can help to deepen your engagement with a particular show.

In fact, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, “Many devices have become popular across generations, with a majority of adults now owning cell phones, laptops and desktop computers. Younger adults are leading the way in increased mobility, preferring laptops to desktops and using their cell phones for a variety of functions, including internet, email, music, games and video.”

“We recognize that our audiences are no longer just sitting on the couch watching our programming,” said Kristin Frank, general manager and senior vice president of MTV and VH1 Digital, New York. “We know that they increasingly have a laptop and a mobile device with them while they watch and are consistently multitasking in their lives."

Time to Change the Channel?

I am left wondering where this shift will take us. After all, our society loves to not only consume content, but also to actively engage and participate in the creation of that content.

This wholesale change in how we not only consume, but also create media hit home for me when I attended a session called “Taking Videos Beyond YouTube” at the recent Nonprofit Technology Conference. There, Ben Moskowitz of the Mozilla Foundation cautioned, “You can’t be the only provider of your media” in today’s multi-media and multi-platform world. Likewise, as a consumer you cannot be expected to view all media from just one provider when so many choices exist and are readily accessible.

Pass the Popcorn

Taking the next step, Mozilla created an innovative new platform—Popcornjs.org, which takes integration of broadcast and social media to the next level. Designed to seamlessly integrate online content into videos, video creators can now enhance their creations with Wikipedia pages, Google earth maps, Flickr photo streams, Twitter feeds, etc. making for a much more integrated and active experience. While currently in beta format, the platform is vying to change overall engagement.

The possibilities are literally endless when it comes to the synchronization of video and web content in this virtual “Choose Your Own Adventure” for videos. The tool is not just for entertainment purposes either, when it comes to creating compelling content this medium will no doubt be an effective tool for social change advocates.

What do you think... how might you use a tool such as Popcorn? How do you think the increasing integration of online content into more traditional forms of media will change how we consume information?