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.

Twitter bets on Star Wars for entertainment live stream success

After conquering sports and politics, Twitter is bringing its live streaming into the entertainment sector with a People Magazine partnership that is likely to garner substantial views as consumers gear up for the latest Star Wars installation. 

The event is being produced in conjunction with People magazine. The promotion represents how Twitter is setting itself apart from other social platform?s live-streaming efforts by focusing on one-time events, rather than standard user-generated sharing.

"People come to Twitter to see what's happening in the entertainment world, and the conversation about movies, especially Star Wars, is constant on Twitter," said Anthony Noto, chief operating officer at Twitter. "Our collaboration with Disney and People will give fans fresh and exciting live Star Wars content that they can view and Tweet about all on the same platform."

Star Wars
Since the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens last year, Star Wars hype has been at a fever pitch. With the announcement that there would be a new Star Wars film every December for the next few years, the holiday season has become even more anticipated by fans.

Lucasfilm, the production company that produces Star Wars, is ramping up its marketing efforts as November comes to a close to start getting people even more excited for the first Star Wars ?anthology film,? Rogue One, which comes out at the end of December.


First on the list for building up that excitement is a partnership with People magazine to live stream an event dedicated to the new film through Twitter.

The event will show unreleased footage from the new film as well as question and answer sessions with the director, Gareth Edwards, and other members of the production crew.

The live stream will also host interviews with the cast of the film including stars Felicity Jones, Ben Mendelsohn, Riz Ahmed and Alan Tudyk. The event will be hosted by People deputy editor JD Heyman. 

During the live stream, fans are encouraged to submit their questions online through Twitter, using the promoted hashtag #AskRogueOne.

Twitter is also introducing a unique new feature; when a Twitter user types the hashtags #RogueOne, #DeathStar, #StarWars or #StarWarsRogueOne, the Twitter application will automatically add a Star Wars emoji to the tweet next to the hashtag.

Live streaming
The discussion over live streaming provided by social networks has been almost completely dominated by Facebook Live, which has seen a variety of uses over the past few months since it was introduced.

But Twitter is striking back at that perceived dominance with its own live-streaming efforts that take a different tack that is friendlier to marketers.

Twitter?s live-streaming service, as opposed to Facebook?s general purpose streaming, which can be used by anyone at any time, is more focused on big, planned events such as a press conference or celebration.

Facebook has mainly focused its live video efforts for marketers on Instagram, which was introduced a few weeks ago (see story).


Twitter is hoping that a marketer-friendly live-streaming service will help attract bigger clients and turn the social network into a popular platform for live events.

"Disney and Lucasfilm are always seeking out innovative ways to tell great stories and engage with fans around the world," said Ricky Strauss, President, Marketing, The Walt Disney Studios. "We're thrilled to join forces with Twitter and People to create this can't-miss Rogue One event that gives Star Wars fans a behind-the-scenes peek at one of the most talked-about movies of the year."