The Second Screen

It’s a practice that you’re already familiar with- called ‘second-screen,’ it’s the use of another device while watching TV. Who hasn’t checked Facebook or emails on their phone, tablet or computer while watching a favorite TV show? Maybe you’re even reading this blog on your laptop while watching the news right this very moment. Nine times out of ten, you probably don’t even realize you’re doing it. Heck, in the course of writing this blog entry I must checked my phone at least three times.

I’ll have to admit; it’s a great way to pass the time in between commercial breaks and is truly multi-tasking at its finest…even if you’re just multi-tasking between leisure activities.

Just as the DVR shaped how commercials are made, “second screening” can present some new opportunities for brands to interact with an increasingly attention-deficit audience.

AMC, for example, does a particularly good job capitalizing on this by encouraging viewers to check out additional content and opportunities to chat with other fans of their show “The Walking Dead” as it airs via their online page “The Talking Dead.” In looking at some of the chat threads, which continue all week long, it looks as though the writers will have no shortage of creative content for many seasons to come.

This sort of second screen platform not only enables viewers to go from passively watching a program to engaging with other fans, but it also finally gives people a reason to watch a show in real-time as opposed to watching it on their DVRs.

It’s hard to imagine what we did before all of these distractions.