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Far more than 50,000 fans are already “checked in”, as they
call it here, on the social TV platform, and this
number is growing every minute. “Hopefully
Eva will sing one of her own songs again,”
Karen writes about her favorite contestant.
Timo answers promptly: “I want to get
goooosebuuumps again.” Backstage videos,
background info, ways to vote, competitions:
There’s a lot going on on the Connect platform,
which is a mobile app as well as a website.
The central element is a live stream. But
most users prefer to watch on a big conventional
TV screen while they submit their comments
live to the Connect community. Social
TV feels like this: “Now you can experience
the community feeling of an exciting evening
of TV not just with a few friends, but with
tens of thousands of like-minded people,”
says Johannes Bayerl (30), online editor at
ProSiebenSat.1 Digital. His colleague Mara
Pilz (29) adds: “That is exactly why we developed
Connect.”
It’s the logical continuation of a principle that
has guided ProSiebenSat.1 for a long time:
Extending successful shows into the digital
world in order to offer viewers round-theclock
entertainment. A show like “The Voice
of Germany” supplies fans with exciting
content 24 hours a day seven days a week: At www.voice-of-germany.de, on the Facebook
and Twitter accounts of the participants and
now also on Connect. Johannes Bayerl gives
an example: “If viewers’ favorite Eva Croissant
writes ‘bad cold :-(’ on her Facebook page,
worried fans want to know what is up. So we
go to Eva and follow her in rehearsals. We
then have the good news, ‘Eva will sing’,
immediately
as a video on the web and on
Connect.” This increases excitement and
anticipation
for the TV show. “The subject can
also be included if we show a clip of the hospital
visit or read out the nice messages from
well-wishers,” explains Mara Pilz. And after
the show, Eva goes online to say thank you for
the support, which creates new opportunities
to connect …
Shortly before the big performance at the Olympic Hall in Munich: Katharina Frömsdorf (centre), Managing Director of Starwatch Entertainment, backstage with the artists from “The Voice of Germany”.
Greater audience loyalty through participation: That is what ProSiebenSat.1’s social TV activities are about. “Strategically, a platform like Connect was the next logical step,” says Matthias Heidenfelder, Senior Concept Developer at ProSiebenSat.1 Digital. “Connect offers brand new ways to interact. Particularly live, while the show is on air.” Therefore, Heidenfelder is not afraid of the “second screen” trend — on the contrary. The television screen alone is often not enough for younger viewers any more — they use their iPad or smartphone at the same time. “As long as it all has to do with our show, there could be nothing better for us,” Heidenfelder is sure. Connect functions as a perfect companion to the show, with a comment function, backstage material, and opportunities to guess, win and vote. “If two contestants on ‘The Voice of Germany’ go up against each other,” says Johannes Bayerl, “Connect users can join in and vote on who impressed them the most. And we show the results live on the TV broadcast!”
Ensuring entertainment around the clock: Online editors Maria Pilz and Johannes Bayerl.
By the same token, the program makers also
benefit from this direct contact, as Connect
allows them to receive feedback from their
audience faster than ever before. What
works? What do people not like? The user
comments give valuable information no
matter
what. Being there is everything.
It all comes together: First online, then at the concert
It seems as if the old Olympic motto is
becoming
newly relevant for social TV. All
the more when you see how the show goes
on after the grand final of the second season
of “The Voice of Germany”. The fan community,
which met virtually on Connect or the
website, came together a few weeks later in
Germany’s concert venues. On one January
evening, Katharina Frömsdorf (35), who is
responsible for ProSiebenSat.1’s music and
live entertainment commitments as Managing
Director of Starwatch Entertainment, is
standing in the middle of the Olympic Hall in
Munich, between thousands of excited fans
in front of a spectacular stage on which the
semi-finalists from “The Voice of Germany”
are putting on their final show after eight
previous performances in all of Germany’s
major cities. Katharina Frömsdorf is right to
be proud. “It was a risk,” she says in the
break between two songs. “We couldn’t be
completely sure if it would really work. No
one in the country had tried this in this form
before — sending eight newly discovered
artists to the biggest venues.” At this
moment, the live band starts playing — and
Brigitte Lorenz (42), Team Nena, who just a
few months ago was making the beds in a
hospital in the Ruhr, is in front rocking out. A
storm of excitement sweeps through the
crowd. Frömsdorf laughs, then shouts to be
understood: “It’s great when an idea works
so well!”
Inspiring: That is ProSieben Connect. The social TV platform was developed by Matthias Heidenfelder, Senior Concept Developer at ProSiebenSat.1 Digital, and his team.
But that is not a completely new experience
for Katharina Frömsdorf and her team. Starwatch
Entertainment has often shown how
well TV, music and live show business can be
combined. The power of television makes
bands, singers and their songs famous — the
stars that Starwatch looks after include
former
“The Voice of Germany” winners Ivy
Quainoo and Nick Howard as well as the
hip-
hop legends “Die Fantastischen Vier”,
the German pop titan Heino, rock legend
Udo Lindenberg and the international rock
star Lenny Kravitz. And the power of music
touches millions in front of their televisions …
of which “The Voice of Germany” tour with a
total attendance of 70,000 is no bad example.
“As a subsidiary of ProSiebenSat.1, we have
unique opportunities as a label and concert
organizer,” says Katharina Frömsdorf once
the very last encore has faded away.
On the way home through the dark Munich
Olympiapark, many “The Voice of Germany”
fans are already hunched over the glowing
displays of their smartphones to share their
special experience with the world. One girl
beams at her friend: “I can hardly wait till the
third season of ‘The Voice of Germany’
starts!”
What is meant by social TV?
PROF. DR. SCHNEIDER: The connection of the television
medium with social networks on the internet —
Facebook or Twitter, for example. We narrow down the
term and refer only to communication during a TV
broadcast rather than before or afterward. This sametime
communication is becoming ever more important.
Is “normal television” no longer enough?
PROF. DR. SCHNEIDER: It seems so. A few years ago
everybody thought that TV use would decline because
the younger generation found not only print media
unattractive, but also television. But on the contrary,
TV use is going up. Not least because television
provides
an ideal reason to communicate on social
networks. Young people especially have always liked
to talk about shared experiences, including television
shows that everybody has seen. Social TV now makes
it possible to celebrate, to cheer on, to gripe, and to
get excited and enthusiastic … live, during the show.
And if you want, you can do it together with a nearly
unlimited circle of like-minded people. You could also
say that the age of passive absorption in front of the
television screen is over.
What formats are particularly popular among online communities?
PROF. DR. SCHNEIDER: Shows that are current and
offer a strong emotional appeal, so the community
can share the excitement and join in. No wonder that
“The Voice of Germany”, “Germany’s next Topmodel —
by Heidi Klum” and “Schlag den Raab” have an awful
lot going on in the networks, as we discovered with
our studies. The same is true for the “Tatort” crime
series, but as a cult show, we can say that is a special
case. And ARD barely does anything to reach out to
the community purposefully. ProSiebenSat.1 is much
farther ahead in this regard.
What would you say to a TV provider that wants to benefit from social TV?
PROF. DR. SCHNEIDER: Take your opportunities!
Building up expertise is a must, or you will embarrass
yourself in the community. Remember that network
communication has to offer an additional experience.
Apps like ProSieben Connect can be useful for that.
It is all worth it, because social TV is good not only for
brand management and audience retention, but also
as a fascinating tool for measuring success. Whether
praise or criticism, honest feedback comes in straight
away. As a broadcaster, you obviously have to trust
that.
