Interactivity

______________________________________________________ 28/11/09
Interactivity & the red button

My current course is mainly design based and focuses on photography, print based and computerised graphics, web design and development, blogs, 2d and 3d animation, screen design, social networking mobile applications, new products to the creative industries, podcasts, online broadcasting, gaming, video including filming, storyboarding, directing, production music & sound, visual effects, editing, and scripting plus developing all of these subjects for interactive mobile, web and DVD applications and other emerging formats.
Since joining the course I have decided that I would like to progress into a career in the television industry with my design background I will probably look towards a career which combines both graphics and TV production – maybe interactivity or adding graphics post production, but I am enthusiastic to learn all areas available to me.
Because of this I have started looking into interactivity i.e. the red button on sky, however other formats of this are the websites, competitions, and voting applications.

To use the interactivity features through your tv, simply press the red button on your remote control at any time. Sometimes you will be prompted to press the button by an announcement in a programme or a red button logo appearing in the top right-hand corner of the TV screen.
· News the latest local, national and international news, and a menu of multiple screens for video updates, all available 24 hours a day
· Sport up-to-the-minute sports news and results, plus a choice of coverage with extra live matches and alternative commentary
· Information weather forecasts, travel reports and business news
· Join in with programs have your say
· CBeebies games and stories for very young children
Another use is when tv channels advertise upcoming tv programs

Interactive TV is available with any digital service, though the type and number of features vary according to whether you have digital terrestrial, satellite, cable or broadband.
Most of the interactive features currently available are provided by the BBC, Sky and the cable companies. A few other broadcasters, including ITV, offer a limited range.
Examples of content:-

Boomerang – kids TV –
When the red button is pressed it shows platform games the majority which you have to pay for however some are free.

ITV interactive














– ITV1 – a banner pops up at the bottom of the screen so that you can still view the television program you where watching as well as hearing the sound.
On the banner you can click on multiple options for different ITV TV programs.
Such as X factor and Im a celebrity.

Under the X factor you have the options to enter the competition, see the latest news highlights and information about the show.
The interface is quite plain in comparison to the Im a Celebrity get me out of here page which uses graphics matching the show.

Again on this channel you are given the option to enter a competition as well as the feature to view a profile of each contestant, a comments page which features comments off ITV.com/celebrity as well as a feature called Jungle Juicer which plays small video feeds. There is also a game uploaded onto this page called Jungle Dash which is a Sky Game external to the service meaning you have to pay for it.

The Coronation street area has a surprisingly modern look through its use of graphics its more what you might expect from the X factor than Coronation street, on this page there are links to “Catch up”, to view “news & Gossip” and “previews”
When you press Catch Up it shows the video highlights over the last week with the date written in a banner across the video clip.
Under News and Gossip there are a few story lines which you can click on for more information with little hints to what may or may not happen yet.

With the early morning talk show This Morning you can enter competitions, view snippets from over the last week and look at the recipes featured on the show, the interface reflects graphics from the show and keeping the theme from the TV show itself.

The ITV interactive bar also includes direct links to some of the games featured on Sky Games such as Who wants to be a Millionaire and Family fortunes.

And of course you can access TeleText

Between each new page loading there are adverts for other ITV shows such as This Morning.
Each page has links to their sponsors via the yellow button, which means that their sponsors also get a page on ITV interactivity. On the Harvey’s furniture store for instance you can view their latest offers and products. You can sign up to their ‘vip’ newsletter for the latest sales and news.

The BBC News channel allows you to view the headline which most interests you meaning you don’t have to wait for the story you want to crop up in the news schedule as you can go straight to it.


Images taken myself during broadcast.



________________________________________________________ 15/12/09 14:39
Further research into interactivity

SKY interactive:

Sky Active QVC Shopping PlayJam Games Teletext Holidays Sky Customer services Sky Gamestar PlayMonteCarlo & Roulette Directgov - Government Information Sky Vegas NHS Interactive Skykeys /Internet Sites
There are plenty of offers available through Sky Interactive services. Look for the RED button while watching TV, this indicates that interactive services are available, allowing you to get more involved in the programme being broadcast. Many services require a connection to a U.K. landline.

Sky Welcome
On Sky Welcome you can see demonstration of how to use the basic Sky Digital receivers and a demonstration of the Sky+ receivers. Check out the Sky Welcome channel 998. It’s a great way to get to know Sky and discover how to make the most of your Sky features and services. There are no interactive or text features on this channel.
Channel Four no longer broadcasts red button services, Five has a very limited service available.

Teletext
With Teletext Holidays TV on Sky channel 665, you can now see the resorts and destinations before you book. The channel features all of the deals available through the analogue service and website. You'll find bargains from a selection of the UK's most popular holiday brands including First Choice, Thomsons, Cheapestflights.com, Hays Travel and Freedom Direct. If you're interested in a holiday different from the one being broadcast on the channel or want to check some destination guides or holiday ideas, you can search through thousands more package holidays, flights, UK breaks and cruise bargains using the free digital text service by simply pressing the TEXT button on your Sky remote. The digital text holiday pages can also be accessed by pressing INTERACTIVE on a Sky digital remote control and selecting Teletext Holidays. Some services require that you are connected to a UK landline.
Sky Gamestar
Challenge, test and tease yourself here with the best games for all the family by pressing Yellow from the Sky Active front page and selecting Puzzles & Games. Choose from a great selection of games, from word games such as Word Crunch, quiz games like Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, kids' games such as Looney Tunes and old classics like Monopoly, Scrabble and Tetris! Or you could even pit your wits against Trivial Pursuit Cash Quiz and see if you can win instant cash by answering questions on categories including Art and Literature, Science and Nature and Sports and Leisure.

Entertainment
Within Entertainment, you can also check out the film showing times for your local cinema, and book tickets at ODEON cinemas - all through your TV. There's also a brilliant What's On Guide with information on local events including music to suit all tastes, local attractions, comedy & club nights, festivals, ideas for family days out and more. You can even book to see shows, theatre performances and gigs with Lastminute.com and Keith Prowse Tickets using your remote control.
Sports & Betting Whether you're one for the horses, a footy fanatic or just fancy a wager on the latest reality TV show, visit the Sports & Betting area. Here, you can place bets with one of our bookmaker partners on a whole range of sports and more, plus pick up our tipster's selections for upcoming events. (You must be over 18 to place a bet).







http://www.astra2d.com/interactive.htm - all info above - 15/12/09 - 14:39pm


________________________________________________________ 15/12/09 14:45
Other ways of interacting - away from the TV itself...

The internet
- All big networks i.e. Five, BBC, Channel4, ITV have websites which have an indervidual page for each of their television programs.
- with these you can interact directly with each program by clicking on its indervidual page, you can enter competitions watch past episodes, add your feedback and more.

Mobile phone apps
- Sky has many I-phone apps in particular,

Such as the iPhone app: Sky+ Iphone which is avaliable to download from the app store now. It basically gives you sky plus on your Iphone. Find out more here: SkyIphone App which gives working screen shotts as examples of the app in action!
To get the app working you must create an account which links to your sky box.
The draw back of it is that obviously you do need to have Sky at home, and that you have to request to view the program 30 mins before it actually starts... this is so that a request can be sent to your Sky box and back to your Iphone.

Phone in -
phoning in is quite dated now, with all of the new technologys which have been invented there seems no point for it unless you really need to speak to a person i.e. for help or to make a compliant.


________________________________________________________ 15/12/09 14:51
the ways of interacting before satellite boxes, mobile phones and the internet

the main reasons for 'interacting' were to enter competitions on programs such as Blue Peter
-to interact you had to send in a postcard/letter with your details and the competition answer.
Now you can simply send an email or enter online.


_______________________________________________________ 14/01/09 13.21
I have been looking at the types of television programs available for viewing combined with the sorts of content they have included with them.

Sport:
Most sports channels such as sky sports only show recent updates that has happened overall in the sports world whereas individual sports channels such as LFCTV, Chelsea TV ect.... don’t have the red button function, So I could create a working interface for this, including individual match highlights i.e. LFCTV could view Liverpool match highlights, and have mini games with their coloured shirts as characters. The red button content could also include player Bios including their age, height and what year they joined the team.
With this I could also create a sponsor’s advert i.e. Carling or Umbro could have an advert on the selected page.

Cartoons:
Cartoons such as Nicktoons, have a small amount of interactive content such as games with characters from popular cartoons such as sponge bob square pants. This could even feature a few cartoon episodes like on SKY anytime where selected shows can be played when you want, so that you don’t have to wait for the TV schedule to catch up with you.

News Programs:
News programs show the latest news updates as it happens, a great example of this is the BBC.

Reality TV:
Reality TV programs such as X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent host competitions, a vote through the TV, profiles of each contestant and the ability to view recent clips,

Soap Operas
Soap operas show recent clips and highlights from their shows, as well as trailers for upcoming story lines.


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