I was watching TV earlier when an advert for an iOS App appeared (I forget what it was now).
It made me realise that there is no interaction between what we see on our Televisions screens and the computers in our hands, aka our Smartphones.
It’s 2016 so I should be able to watch an advert, pick up my phone and it knows what advert I’ve just seen and allow me to download the app, purchase the product or view the website etc.
I see it as a list of previously viewed adverts, maybe just for the current advert break, each with the name of the advertiser, product, brief description then an action link. This link would vary depending on the type of product being advertised.
Some examples based on adverts I’ve seen recently:
- Advert for Clash of Clans – Would link to the App Store (or open the app if already installed).
- Advert for Go Compare Insurance Comparison – Would open the website (or the app if they have one and is installed).
- Advert for Spectre on DVD – Would open a competitive list of retailers with the product on sale, affiliate links allowing some money to be made back from the process.
The list could go on and on, every advert could at least open a website if there is no applicable action such as Purchasing the product.
Advertisers would love it as they should get more interaction with their potential customers as it’s much easier for them to do so, plus would be able to get anonymous numbers on how many people have clicked through on which of their adverts, giving them much more feedback than traditional advertising gives.
I guess it would have to be something made by either the TV manufacturer if using built in FreeView or the set top box maker if using YouView or Sky etc although it would obviously also need input from the channel itself as the advert would need some form of metadata paired up with the timings of the advert.
It would take a lot of work, from a lot of different groups of people, but would it be worth it? All it would save is having to type a few words into your App Store or web browser, but who doesn’t like a streamlined, easier process?
I suppose in a world where Netflix is gaining more and more popularity and Apple is continually rumoured to bring an update to the Apple TV to allow per channel subscriptions maybe we’re past the time and place for this sort of development?
Maybe this already exists and I’ve missed it, but if not why hasn’t anyone done it yet?