ARCHIVES: This is legacy content from before Marketing Dive acquired Mobile Marketer in early 2017. Some information, such as publication dates, may not have migrated over. Check out the new Marketing Dive site for the latest marketing news.

NBC Universal bets big on second-screen Zeebox app

NBC Universal is one of the first broadcasters to partner with the new application Zeebox to ramp up its second-screen experience.

The Zeebox app comes at a time when both marketers and third-party apps are vying for a consumer?s attention while they are glued to TV sets. The Zeebox app is available for iPhone, iPod and Android devices.

?NBC News is planning to optimize all our brands within Zeebox but particularly hopes to drive value around big live events,? said Ryan Osborn, vice president of digital innovation at NBC News, New York.

?The debates have been a great experiment and we hope to build on those learnings,? he said.

?We believe that viewers and users will continue to migrate across all screens. Therefore, we need to make sure that our stories resonate on all them, regardless of platform.?

Mobile watching
The Zeebox app includes a page of content for each show and network in the United States.

The goal behind Zeebox is to help viewers discover new content from their favorite TV shows. To help find this new content, social media is heavily ingrained into the app. For instance, the app uses Twitter to show which shows are most talked about.

Additionally, shows include buttons to let consumers chat with their friends during on-air broadcasts by hooking up the app to a user?s Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Individual show pages also include ?Zeetags? ? or keywords ? that users can click on for more information about a show ? such as the cast.

Each broadcaster and network can tailor individual programs to a brand?s page.

For example, NBC News recently began incorporating Zeebox with the presidential debates. Users who authenticate the app through a social network can view curated content about the debate through the app.

Users can then chat to other plugged-in friends and family from their social networks while watching the on-air broadcast in real time. Content can also be shared from the app.

On the other hand, NBC is using the Zeebox app in conjunction with its show ?The Voice? to ask consumers polls and trivia questions in real-time during the show.

Overall, NBC Universal is planned to produce Zeebox components for more than 300 shows across its networks. NBC Universal has also invested an undisclosed amount to take a minority equity stake in Zeebox.

Other partners already on board with Zeebox include HBO, Viacom, Cinemax and Comcast Cable. Similarly to NBC Universal?s involvement, individual program?s incorporation of Zeebox differs by brand.

By the end of the fourth quarter of 2012, Comcast is expected to integrate the app to serve as a virtual remote control to let subscribers change channels on their TV sets, according to Jason Forbes, executive vice president and managing director of U.S. Zeebox, New York. Comcast has also invested in Zeebox for a minority equity stake.

TV?s newest companion
Zeebox rolled into the U.S. in September after being launched in Britain last year and comes at a time when a number of apps and services are grabbing for consumers? attention while watching TV.

Viggle and Shazam are also premised on the idea of letting users interact with live content, but according to Mr. Forbes what makes Zeebox stand out is its focus on bringing everything inside one app.

Although television companion apps can be helpful at fueling a one-to-one relationship between marketers and consumers, the technology can also be disruptive to what consumers are watching.

Additionally, the plethora of apps for consumers to choose from can be overwhelming without solid education behind the technology.

NBC Universal?s goal of incorporating the Zeebox in all of the company?s brands could give it a leg up compared to other apps and services because consumers who are familiar with the app will eventually begin to associate the app as the one-stop guide to watching TV.

Zeebox could also potentially help NBC sell cross-screen advertising. For instance, a marketer might be able to buy a TV spot in conjunction with a placement inside the app that gives users additional information from the TV ad with a direct call-to-action such as a way to buy a product featured an ad directly from their handsets.

?Discovery, social, interactivity, information and shopping are the five pillars that make Zeebox different and work across every network and show,? Mr. Forbes said.

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is associate reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York