PC-Synchronous Enhancements take advantage of the significant number of households who have a PC and TV in the same room. Enhancements are offered on the web during a given television program, synchronized to the program.
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SERVES
Viewers with a television, PC and Internet connection in the same room.
PC-Synchronous Enhancements offer advantages over TV Enhancements:
- no enhanced set-top-box is required.
- the enhancement interaction by one viewer does not disturb others watching the same show.
Disadvantages include:
- the inability to overlay enhancements with the TV image.
- the requirement for mouse/keyboard interaction, instead of a simple remote.
INGREDIENTS
HTML Designers
It helps to have designers familiar with real-time interactivity.
PC-Synchronous Application Engine
PC-Synchronous enhancements require an application to send page update commands to every connected web browser at specific times thorughout the television program. It takes specialized software to handle this task. The incompatibility of various web browsers and operating systems complicates matters further.
Web Server
It takes powerful servers to handle the simultaneous needs for thousands of viewers. You made need to utilize an edge server vendor for this task.
INSTRUCTIONS
1 - Develop Infrastructure
Choose an application vendor and install necessary supporting systems. You will likely also need an Asset Management System to handle the large amount of content required for synchronous enhancements.
2 - Develop Content
Determine what content will be engaging for the viewer. Make sure the enhancement content supports and does not undermine the television program. If you are offering enhancements for a program that is repeated for multiple time zones, be sure to include a mechanism to steer the user to the proper web pages for their region.
3 - Promote Enhancements
Build user interest through both on-air and on-web promotion.
4 - Synchronize Enhancements
For each time-zone delay or program rebroadcast, run the enhancement script in synchronizm with the television program.
5 - Troubleshoot Problems
Include a viewer feedback mechanism so that you can be aware of and fix compatibility issues with your content.
