All Articles Tagged "Google TV"
Will The Revolution Really Be Televised?
Look around. While all our tech gadgets may have us enthralled, recent stats from the Pew Research Center show that TV is still a dominant media force among young African-Americans. No doubt, we’re media-meshing: flat screen on, while laptop is open nearby, cell phone at-the-ready, maybe even recording one program to watch on schedule while watching another in real time. Being so “plugged in” means that you always know what’s up. But just how much might we risk missing in this country when it comes to the convergence of images and technology?
While, thankfully, we don’t have to deal with the jammed satellite TV broadcasts Iran implemented as it experiences the domino effect of revolution this week in the Middle East, we should all be aware of the fact that image, when combined with commerce and influence, makes for some interesting power plays. But the question is: just who is the pawn? Typically it’s the average consumer, so here’s something we should all be up on.
Behind the scenes at the Federal Communications Commission ( the entity which essentially governs our airwaves), a stealth battle is being waged over the future of television and the convergence of technology. The FCC is trying to set limits regarding devices like Google TV to access pay TV content and reconfigure into images that will work with both television and the Internet. The proposal is called AllVid system, and Google is definitely carrying the flag for such policy. AllVid doesn’t exist yet, but here’s the concept: to make mandatory an industry-wide tech piece that you could plug into your broadband router and connect to your cable TV provider, then watch all the online video and pay channels you want via a variety of AllVid-type gadgets. Hot, right? But your cable provider really hates the proposal, because it would create mad competition to their services for which you are already paying a ton. Word is that HBO and the NBA are already on board with Google, but the other networks, not so much.
It’s interesting how these companies make such moves without consulting the very consumers who enable them to become the financial behemoths they are. Look, for example, at what the National Coalition of African-American Owned Media (NAACOM) says regarding Comcast (should you be one of the many millions in this country under their cable jurisdiction): African American subscribers make up approximately 40% of Comcast’s $36 billion annual revenue, representing $15 billion annually. That’s an awful lot of chips.
The question that, particularly young, digitally savvy African-Americans might want to ask themselves is if it’s okay for our voices not to be heard, considering that our household monthly bills will be affected? Do you want more images that reflect you if you have to pay that much? Maybe it’s time to get acquainted with a sister who is a Commissioner on the FCC named Mignon Clyburn. What’s another email in the sea of communications you transmit each day? Something tells me this generation may end up being more vocal about these issues than the last.
Just some food for thought.
Lauren DeLisa Coleman is a writer, host and thought-leader specializing in the diverse segment of the Gen Y demo, tech and its convergence with socio-economic concerns. She is also the CEO and founder of Punch Media Group, an edgy digital media and entertainment company which develops pop culture experience and branding strategy across digital platforms. Follow her @mediaempress
Five Reasons Consumers Won't Tune in to Google TV
(AdAge) — Last week, with great fanfare, Google announced its plans to visit your living room via the TV screen. With the promise of interactivity and the magic of the internet on your TV, some industry analysts heralded Google’s plans and predicted a technological renaissance that would change our TV-viewing experience forever. But just as it’s the giant who steps on the most landmines, the search engine behemoth’s plans are doomed to repeat the failures of Microsoft’s Web TV, Apple TV and Yahoo TV. Combined, these companies have a market share of around zero. In the announcement last week, Google executives acknowledged the dominance of TV. The average American watches five hours of TV a day — that’s 10 to 12 times more leisure activity than is spent on the PC. More than $70 billion advertising is spent on TV advertising annually, with 4 billion TV users worldwide. People love TV and they love the internet, but they love them for very different reasons.
Five Reasons Consumers Won't Tune in to Google TV
(AdAge) — Last week, with great fanfare, Google announced its plans to visit your living room via the TV screen. With the promise of interactivity and the magic of the internet on your TV, some industry analysts heralded Google’s plans and predicted a technological renaissance that would change our TV-viewing experience forever. But just as it’s the giant who steps on the most landmines, the search engine behemoth’s plans are doomed to repeat the failures of Microsoft’s Web TV, Apple TV and Yahoo TV. Combined, these companies have a market share of around zero. In the announcement last week, Google executives acknowledged the dominance of TV. The average American watches five hours of TV a day — that’s 10 to 12 times more leisure activity than is spent on the PC. More than $70 billion advertising is spent on TV advertising annually, with 4 billion TV users worldwide. People love TV and they love the internet, but they love them for very different reasons.
Advertisers Give Google TV a Warm Reception
(BusinessWeek) — Say you’re watching TV and an ad for Chevy’s Silverado pickup catches your eye. Come this fall, viewers using Google’s new interactive television technology will be able to type the object of their desire into an onscreen search box and launch a YouTube GOOG video or surf over to Chevy’s (FIATY) website. Advertisers foresee a new medium to get their message to consumers. “Google is going to revolutionize the way we use media,” says Shattuck Groome, president of New York ad agency Gotham Direct Interactive, which buys TV ads for brands that include M&M‘s candy and Zappos.com (AMZN). “It’s the future of advertising.”
Google TV Could Change the Game for Black Media
(Black Web 2.0) — Google TV has the potential to be a game changer for Black media. It won’t change things over night, but once the penetration is high enough, things will never be the same in TV land. There won’t be any gatekeepers to decide who does and doesn’t get a show on TV in the future. No one will know what primetime is. If you want to watch something, you’ll search for it or go to the site directly and watch the video with ads paid for by the highest bidder. Sports events will be the only thing still locked into old school programming blocks.
WATCH: Google Meets The Web, Introducing Google TV
(GoogleBlog.com)
