• by Steve Smith  @popeyesm, February 4, 2013

The maker of entertainment guide and discovery app NextGuide, Dijit Media Inc. announced it is in the process of acquiring GoMiso, maker of the Miso, SideShows and Quips apps, which enhance TV viewing. Dijit says it will continue to support both the Miso app, which enhances TV content, and SideShows, which identifies actors, fashion and other aspects of on-screen content. Quips, which pulls quotes and image grabs from TV content for social sharing will be discontinued. GoMiso founder Somrat Niyogi will act as an advisor to Dijit.

In its announcement, Dijit CEO Jeremy Toeman says “this acquaition will give us more tools to give our users a guide experience that redefines how people discover content. Dijit’s NextGuide app taps into the broad range of multimedia on demand and broadcast channels, from the TV grid to Amazon, Netflix and Hulu premium services and iTunes to personalize media recommendations and discovery. NextGuide so far has emphasized content discovery rather than synchronized, enhanced experiences. This acquisition give Dijit technology and a footprint in that second-screen world.   

GoMiso was among the earliest entrants in the “second screen” app category that tries to enhance or guide TV and multi-screen experiences. The founders said on their company blog that the Miso and SideShows apps and their community of users will live on under Dijit. They claim to have been among the first to use media “check-ins” and to offer synchronized second-screen experiences.  

The acquisition is another sign that second-screen apps are maturing into a new phase of possible consolidation and partnership. After a protracted courtship Viggle walked away from merger plans with GetGlue. UK entrant Zeebox penned a partnership with Comcast that allows the app to act as a remote control for cable boxes. With the most lucrative medium yet invented in play, the social TV space is already mightily cluttered with startups, white-label solutions serving networks and show producers and platforms like Twitter now moving more aggressively to stake a claim to all the second-screen activity that goes on across devices.