As Hulu looks to appeal to more advertisers, the company will begin charging advertisers only for spots that run in their entirety. If a viewer does the equivalent of using a DVR online and skips a portion of an ad, the marketer will not have to pay. The initiative is an evolution of Hulu’s “ad swap” offering, where a viewer can begin watching an ad and opt to switch to another more relevant or entertaining one. In that case, the initial advertiser that is pushed aside is not charged, but the marketer that benefits from the switch is. Hulu will hold a TV-style upfront presentation this week in New York, where it will plug these options, as well as its veteran “ad selector” option. Hulu, which is moving into original programming, garnered $420 million in revenue last year -- a 60% jump. CEO Jason Kilar said the company is ahead of that pace so far in 2012. He spoke Tuesday at the Ad Age Digital Conference. On Hulu Plus specifically, the pay service, the company now has 2 million-plus paying subscribers: 500,000 more were picked up in the 2012 first quarter. Kilar said there are four metrics the company uses to evaluate whether its ad experience is working for marketers: brand recall, ad message recall, favorability and purchase intent. A Nielsen arm does the measurement and compares the Hulu results to a more traditional platform, such as TV, and Kilar said brand and ad message recall are coming in at two times the other outlet. Looking forward, Kilar said he expects six trends to dominate the future of TV: *The consumer experience will be increasingly personalized, a la Pandora versus traditional radio in that business. *Content options will be exceedingly comprehensive, with unending choices available on-demand from current series to archived stuff. *The TV experience will thrive with “life.” He may have been referring to the efforts to make it more social with person-to-person connectivity. *TV will be “unusually convenient.” Favorite shows available anywhere and everywhere. *Formats will meet the content; traditionally sitcoms have about 22 minutes of content and dramas 44. Now, there will be a need to use clips or shorter offerings that can allow mobile consumption, which fits time and place constraints of transport or location. *There will be relevant, higher-value advertising. This is a core emphasis at Hulu: to move away from widely distributed ads, hoping to find the right audience within the distribution and move toward ads that have an opt-in element or ones that are more contextual.
AOL said it would employ a fledgling Nielsen ratings stream to offer TV-style guarantees on audience delivery for its video ads. The deals will be based on GRPs with audience demographics, not simply clicks or impressions. Companies like AOL, YouTube and Yahoo are looking to leverage original content to peel away some ad dollars from the TV market and are set to conduct their version of an upfront market, branded as the NewFronts. Nielsen’s Online Campaign Ratings seek to offer TV-type data within the online arena, offering buyers a chance to better compare the results of campaigns across platforms. In the TV upfront, networks are increasingly looking to bundle on-air and online inventory. A network like CW with its younger audience is particularly active in the arena. “With online video increasingly playing a role in traditional TV upfront buying and selling, consistent cross-platform metrics are becoming more and more critical to proving the true value of advertising on a site, in terms that are familiar to brand marketers,” stated Steve Hasker, a top Nielsen executive. AOL will hold a NewFront upfront-type event April 24 in New York. Its original content includes “Heidi Klum on AOL” and “Moviefone’s Unscripted.” Some advertisers are skeptical that a NewFront will gain much scale, since there is a perception that even while there is some premium online inventory, it is not particularly limited in availability. Nielsen’s Online Campaign Ratings launched last August and plans call for it to be launched in the U.K. later this year.
Raising the bar for all online publishers, Hulu has committed to only bill brands and agencies for ads that viewers watch in their entirety. “This is an industry first,” according to Jean-Paul Colaco, Hulu's senior vice president, advertising -- explaining that the move is part of Hulu’s “all in” attitude. “Hulu advertisers will not be charged unless their advertisement has been streamed through completion.” The 100% completion rate commitment includes all ads sold by Hulu itself, and will apply to both Hulu and Hulu Plus, Colaco said Tuesday. In beta for several months, Zenith Media, General Mills, and Horizon Media all helped Hulu test its new model. The model has the ability to “minimize waste and maximize effectiveness of video advertising," Rick Hosfield, vice president of content planning and distribution at General Mills, stated. More than a mere marketing gimmick, Colaco sees the move as an extension of Hulu’s intrinsic brand-friendly nature. Bold as the offer may seem, however, it's important to note the difference between Hulu's play and YouTube's -- which is employing a pay-per-complete model, according to Michael Greene, an analyst at Forrester Research. “What Hulu is doing is reinforcing its status as a premium video publisher by calling attention to its strong user engagement and ad completion rates -- metrics that differentiate it from other publishers, especially those in the mid- to long tail,” Green explains. “YouTube, on the other hand, is trying to use consumer ad skipping to its competitive advantage. In a world where users can expect to skip video ads and advertisers pay for completes, only a publisher with the scale of YouTube can effectively compete on those terms," he adds. As Forrester senior analyst Joanna O'Connell notes: “YouTube is also focused heavily on using data to better match advertisers' ads to consumers, based on the likelihood that the consumer will complete the ad. Using data to enhance targeting is smart.” Conversely, in 2007, Hulu launched its ad selector, which encouraged viewers to choose among multiple ads to select the one most relevant to them. More recently, Hulu introduced its ad swap product, which lets viewers replace existing ads for those they feel are more relevant. Since the launch of ad swap, Hulu has seen over 9 million substitutions, according to Colaco. The original Hulu service continues to ramp up users and content, while Hulu Plus -- the company’s U.S. subscription service -- passed more than 2 million paid subscribers in the first quarter of the year. “Based on our research, Hulu Plus has achieved 2 million paying subscribers faster than any video subscription service -- online or offline -- in U.S. history,” per Colaco. There will be no extra cost to Hulu advertisers for this new guarantee.
Rentrak, the measurement company expanding its local-market TV service, has signed a slew of stations, some agencies and now at least one client: a car loan company with operations in 12 states. TitleMax, which offers title loans to consumers who often have limited access to credit, has inked a deal to receive access to Rentrak’s service predicated on set-top-box data. The information, which includes second-by-second data, will be used to more effectively plan media buys. TitleMax can “better define our advertising targets using consistent methodology across all markets," stated Blair R. Jesswein, the marketing director at TitleMax, which operates 800-plus stores. As of 2011, the Savannah, Ga.-based company, which is privately owned, had operations in states from Georgia to Nevada. Rentrak is attempting to challenge Nielsen, partly by offering data culled from far more homes than Nielsen’s panel-based system. The company has deals with station groups such as Post-Newsweek and Nexstar and Hubbard Broadcasting. Its stock price has been rising, up from a 52-week low of $11.23 to $18.25 in midday trading Monday. The Rentrak strategy is to sign a station, agency or client in a particular market. When one begins using its data as a deal-making basis, it hopes that will prompt other entities to sign up.
Tablets are the primary alternative to watching full-length TV shows when traditional TV is not available. New research from Viacom says laptops and desktops are no longer the main choice after traditional TV screens. Tablets comprised a 15% share of viewing full-length TV episodes after traditional TV, according to its survey. The research says that since tablets have gained prominence, viewing of complete TV shows has declined the most on desktops and smartphones. The biggest viewing categories on tablets are similar to what is watched on laptops and desktops: comedy and music. The research says reality is the top genre viewed on television, followed by drama, science fiction and sports. Viacom says aggressive tablet users are those who use apps from MSO-cable operators, Netflix, Apple TV, AirPlay users and Whispersync. About half of those tablet owners who subscribe to a cable company that offers streaming apps use them. The 18-24 demo are heavy users of tablets, especially in the dual video experience of watching TV and using tablets. However, for all users, 77% of tablet use is done alone; 74% of tablet usage is done at home. Viacom surveyed 2,500 people ages 8 to 54. Overall, its study found that 62% use their tablets daily; also that daily tablet users spend an average of 2.4 hours per day on their devices. Eighty-five percent of tablet use is for personal reasons versus business. Colleen Fahey Rush, executive vice president and chief research officer, Viacom Media Networks, stated: "We found that the tablet is a jack of many trades –- it offers video and social experiences, it's a source of information and it's portable. But despite its versatility, other devices prove irreplaceable." Viacom's study also said most tablet owners are not ready to purge their smartphones, laptops or gaming consoles. But 65% would replace their laptop before their tablet because it lacks the work functionality; 77% would replace their iPhone before their iPad.
House Beautiful and HSN (formerly the Home Shopping Network) are collaborating to create a House Beautiful-branded marketplace for home furnishings, including online and mobile e-commerce platforms, and TV promotions, with the airing of “The ‘House Beautiful’ Marketplace” during HSN’s “Spring Home Design Event,” April 17-19. The magazine-branded marketplace on HSN’s Web site offers a range of furniture, lighting, rugs, wall art and accessories, all of which presumably received the magazine’s aesthetic blessing. A narrower range of items will be hand selected and showcased by House Beautiful editors in the “House Beautiful Picks,” a monthly feature appearing on the same Web site. HSN will gain access to House Beautiful content for all its platforms, including online and mobile. There will also be custom content created for HSN by House Beautiful Editor in Chief Newell Turner and Senior Editor Orli Ben-Dor. The HSN TV promotion will include an appearance by Turner, discussing trends in home design and directing viewers to the House Beautiful marketplace. Feeling declines in ad revenue earlier than the rest of the magazine business, a number of domestic and shelter magazine publishers have looked for new revenue streams in retail and sales partnerships. Since 2008 Meredith Corp. has licensed Better Homes and Gardens to Realogy Corporation to sell houses as Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate. In 2010, Elle Décor struck a deal for a branded product line in Kohl’s, and earlier this year Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia signed a licensing deal with JCPenney providing for MSLO mini-shops in JCPenney locations.
In a similar move to one of its sister cable network groups, NBCUniversal's Style Network has formed Style Media, a multimedia content/brand company group. Style Media is set up as an umbrella group -- not just with a TV network focus. It will encompass digital, licensing, merchandising, as well as domestic and international TV networks. Some years back, NBCUniversal Bravo started up Bravo Media with the same intent. And like Bravo, Style has a heavy emphasis with women consumers. Salaam Coleman Smith, president, Style Media, stated: “The creation of Style Media will broaden our business and allow us to capitalize on Style’s strong consumer base of savvy women with immense purchasing power... We want to seize the momentum and ensure that Style Media allows our viewers to experience Style in a multidimensional manner.” Some of the divisions inside Style Media will include Style Digital, where myStyle.com and various social media platforms reside, and Style Licensing & Merchandising, where Style will create products, from clothes to beauty, which will be integrated into shows and offered to consumers for purchase at myStyle.com. In addition, there will be Style International, at which its channels cover 17 million subscribers in 90 countries and nine languages; and Style Experiences in-person live events, including local retail partnerships, styling events and social interactions.
You know your brand is huge if society's fringe elements name a drug after it. Aftermarket fuel additive STP used to be that brand. It was part of our collective unconscious and was ubiquitous in racing: No respectable stock race car or top fuel dragster was without that oval "STP" logo painted somewhere on its nacelle. Now, after several years of little to no advertising, parent Armored AutoGroup is preparing a campaign to reintroduce the brand. The company is launching a TV, digital, radio and event marketing campaign this week, via the San Francisco office of DDB, which won the account last fall. The campaign, with a $6 million media budget, stars NASCAR legend Richard Petty's 2010 Dodge Challenger, with a Fight Club-esque message that if you have to ask whether you belong in the left lane ... you don't belong in the left lane. Back in STP's (and Petty's) halcyon days, the driver raced an STP branded Plymouth Road Runner Superbird. The campaign, promoting STP's "Complete Fuel System Cleaner" and its ability to maximize driving under all conditions, comprises a 30- and 15-second TV spot in which Petty's Challenger zooms down the highway, in the left lane, while slowpokes get out of the car's way. Voiceover is by Mike Cooley, lead singer of Southern rock band Drive-By Truckers. Another version of the spot is going live this weekend with Petty doing voiceover. The band also does the music for the TV spots. The ads direct viewers to Facebook, where visitors are encouraged to join the “Left Lane Club” and enter a chance to win a Richard Petty-autographed car. The TV spots will be on ESPN, Fox, Speed, Fuel, Versus, Spike, TNT, CMT and TBS. There is also a web-based "making of" video about the TV ad. It shows the process of "casting" Richard Petty’s Dodge Challenger, and includes interviews with Richard Petty at his garage in North Carolina, where he talks about his nearly half-century relationship with the STP brand.
Macy's is doubling down on its efforts in reality competition TV game with a business-oriented program on Discovery's TLC Channel. Called "Macy's Million Dollar Makeover," this prime-time special offers promising business entrepreneurs a chance to start up businesses in Macy's retail stores in fashion, home and food areas. Contestants, culled from thousands of Facebook applications, get 24 hours to work up a staging display and presentation for three big-name judges -- Tommy Hilfiger, Marcus Samuelsson and Martha Stewart. Each contestant has two minutes to pitch business plans. The finals winner will take home $1 million. The one-hour special will air on TLC on Tuesday, April 17 at 7 p.m. EST. Macy's put the media/programming plan together with its agency, JWT. Financial and media plan details of the deal were not disclosed. Macy's is already involved in another reality competition effort, NBC's "Fashion Star," where wannabe designers vie to win the chance for their fashions to be sold at Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy's and H&M the day after each pre-recorded episode airs. Here, the fashion winner gets a total $6 million in orders for their designs from all three retailers.
The way to throw a spear really far is to use an extension, which is kind of a lever that fits on the end of the weapon, so you can really wing it. Mitsubishi Motors North America has one of those. The automaker doesn't have a big media budget, but it tends to do campaigns that grab attention because they go to extremes in one way or another. The latest such effort from the Cypress, Calif. company is “Temp Drive,” wherein people get to take a break from work and spend the day à la Ferris Bueller with the new 2012 Outlander Sport (starting at $18,795). The wacky part of this is that consumers are to go to mitsubishicars.com/tempdrive to apply for a temp to replace them at their job for one day. And it gets a little stranger. The temps who will perform the duties for the three people Mitzu chooses for the "play day" will not come from Kelly Girl. Instead, they will include an opera singer, magician, deejay, librarian, meteorologist and rocket scientist. The effort is via agency of record 180LA, which also did the effort that put Mitsubishi Outlanders on the infamous Bolivian Road of Death, among other places. The agency was also behind Mitsubishi Motors’ “Live Drive,” a pure online test drive where consumers could robotically drive a real Mitsubishi crossover. The marketing campaign includes television, digital, social media and public relations. The television spot highlights the features and capabilities of the Outlander Sport that the consumer discovers during his day off. All campaign elements lead consumers to the Web site to sign up. Digital is being handled by Possible Worldwide.
Troy-Bilt touts its yard products as made to last a lifetime, so it makes sense to show one family in varying life stages throughout its TV spot. In an effort to further reach 26- to 49-year-old homeowners and DIYers, Troy-Bilt added the Shazam logo to its commercials, enabling mobile and tablet users to access additional product and song information. Unfamiliar with Shazam? It’s an app that identifies song titles and artists, allowing viewers watching TV from their tablet or smart phone to “tag” the music in the ad. Once the song is tagged, users are directed to a Troy-Bilt site that offers product information, a Lowe’s store locator and links to Troy-Bilt’s web site and Facebook page. In addition, users can also download the full-length version of the song from the ad -- Tom Luce’s “World Goes By” -- via iTunes. The ad, seen here, begins with a young man planting a tree. The spot continues on through the years, as the man is now a young husband mowing the lawn, then a young father cutting the grass on a ride-on mower, and ending as an older father whose children now help with the yard work. “We felt Shazam could be a solution that would allow us to deliver a clear, singular message in the TV spot,” said Jamie Venorsky, associate partner/creative director at Marcus Thomas, Cleveland, the agency behind the campaign. “We reached out to Shazam to study their current user profile. When we overlayed the data, it was a good fit, not just from a demographic perspective, but from a psychographic and technographic perspective, as well.” According to Venorsky, the music used was chosen from a small pool of commissioned work. “We and music house DeepMix identified and commissioned three artists to develop original demos for us. The Luce track supported the visual narrative best. From his demo, we developed the full length track, then cut down a 30-second version for the spot.” The campaign, running through May, is the first time Troy-Bilt has used Shazam in any of its advertising. There are also three different endings to the ad, each showcasing a different product. Two endings launch new products: the Neighborhood Rider riding lawnmower, and Jump Start, a cordless power starter for Troy-Bilt hand products. The third ending promotes Troy-Bilt’s existing line of TriAction lawn mowers.
The NFL, the biggest sport franchise in the U.S., now wants an advertising foothold in gambling, a legitimate growing business that has long looked to the league to become a marketing partner of sorts. The NFL has changed its policy regarding gambling advertising -- but with a host of restrictions. Gambling ads can only appear in local radio broadcasts, program guides given to people at games, and upper-level stadium signage -- essentially anything controlled by the teams themselves. But gambling ads are still not allowed in higher profile TV or digital media messaging. And the creative in the ads that are allowed cannot refer to football in particular, sports in general or any related activities. Also, no players, coaches or teams are allowed to endorse any form of gambling. Indeed, a NFL spokesman has said: “We remain steadfast in our opposition to the proliferation of gambling on NFL games… There is a distinction between accepting advertising in a limited fashion and gambling on the outcome of our games.” Why change its advertising restriction now, you might wonder? The NFL didn’t say specifically -- only that after viewing other sports gambling ad policies, it believed a change was in order. What is certainly true is that gambling is a fast, growing and legal business. The NFL wants its teams be able align themselves locally with these general businesses, much of which pertains to more standard casino-oriented stuff like card games, slot machines and craps. But casinos that advertise cannot have “sport books” -- sports betting services. And gambling ads also have to include “responsible gambling” messages. For years casinos – and big gambling destinations like Las Vegas - - have tried to get commercials into the Super Bowl, either via the national broadcast or by buying local spot. All have been routinely rejected. Then in 2010, the NFL clubs were permitted to accept advertising from the city of Las Vegas, provided such ads contained no references to, or depictions of, gambling or casinos. The NFL is very profitable -- and we imagine most of the clubs are, too. The NFL wants to make sure gambling ads are targeted to adults – and therein may be the connection. Both the NFL and gambling are entertainment for many adults. It makes sense that casinos want to reach NFL customers. There are advertisers and sponsors the NFL already lets in the door which can be troubling to some people. Certain other legal activities done to excess, like drinking beer, can also be a problem.
As a big fan of Fox’s “New Girl,” I was surprised to hear that Zooey Deschanel, the show’s star, is, in some circles, considered to be a controversial figure. Huh? Who could be more anodyne than the cute and innocent star of this very funny show? Deschanel plays Jess, an elementary school teacher who moves into a loft with three guys she met on Craigslist. This is a relationship sitcom, where 90% of the plot revolves around the attempts of the thirty-something main characters to manage their love lives; in that area, Jess is guileless and so averse to manipulation that she can’t even consummate a one-night stand. Apparently the brief against Jess (the character) and Deschanel (the actress) is that they are too “girly.” Or as Jada Yuan explains in New York magazine, “Among women, Deschanel tends to be more polarizing. They either covet her bangs or they resent her for seemingly playing into the male fantasy that women are only attractive when they act like girls.” If you Google “Zooey Deschanel girly,” you will find the litany of complaints. She used to be popular in the hipster community because of her quirky personality, ukulele mastery and wholesome grunge look. But now she makes cynics, who consider her twee and overly precious, want to ‘frow up. And after she jokingly tweeted “I wish everyone looked like a kitten,” more than one feminist head exploded. Sigh. It’s a sad commentary on our hyper-politicized times that someone as sweet as Zooey Deschanel can be considered polarizing. I guess there’s no room in this world for a thirty-year-old woman who overtly loves polka dots and puppies. Over-sexualized power figures like Lady Gaga and dissipated slatterns like Snooki? Yes. But the quintessential girl next door? No. What’s interesting is that as a male person, I always thought the problem with “The New Girl” was that the GUYS were such a mess. They all live in the Apatow universe of men who can’t grow up, find a career or commit to a relationship. Exhibit number one is Nick, the roommate to whom Jess bonds mostly closely. A once-promising law school student who dropped out because of relationship issues, he now tends bar and doesn’t earn enough to buy health insurance or even have a cell phone. Compared to him, Jess totally has her act together. Deschanel is clearly aware of the resentment she engenders, and as a guest host of Saturday Night Live helped create the self-spoofing skit “Bein Quirky.” Even more pointedly, on recent episode of “New Girl,” the writers had Nick’s aggressive new lawyer girlfriend lay out the case against her: this tightly wound woman complains that Jess will get out of a traffic violation because of her “thing,” which she described as “the cupcakes, and the braking for birds, and the whole, ‘Bluebirds help me dress in the morning!’” She continues the attack: "I know that I’m the mean lawyer girl who wears suits and works too much. And you, you’re the really fun teacher girl with all the colorful skirts, and you bake things. And eventually Nick is going to come running to you, and you’ll tuck him in under his blankie." That’s the essence of the argument -- that men prefer submissive, child-like women. But on the show it’s the traditional sexpots, not Jess, who actually attract the guys. Besides, Jess makes the sensible defense that you shouldn’t judge a woman solely on her appearance, telling the lawyer girlfriend: “I’m sorry that I don’t talk like Murphy Brown. And I hate your pantsuit. I wish it had ribbons on it or something just to make it slightly cuter --but that doesn’t mean I’m not smart and tough and strong." And if women resent Jess or Deschanel, it doesn’t show up in the ratings. Women 18-34 watch “New Girl” at almost twice the rate as their male counterparts. My guess is that most young women identify with Jess and her sexual reticence a lot more than they do with Snooki. In any event, the emphasis on clothes and personal style seems to miss the point. Jess’s appeal is not primarily in her fashion choices. Men could care less about the kittens and ribbons. Instead, what makes her truly adorable is that she’s funny, loyal and kind. In later episodes, Nick’s lawyer girlfriend blows him off on Valentine’s Day because she’s working late; later she drops him altogether because he’s so emotionally needy. Jess wouldn’t do that. Both Jess and Deschanel are -- dare we say it -- nice. Deschanel runs a humor website that is open to any woman who wants to contribute, but she says, “Please don’t be mean about other people. Even if you’re really funny, I still don’t think it’s worth it. I have total respect for all of those other sites, but, yeah, snark is not our bag.” Is that what it means to be girlie? To be nice? Also modest, empathetic to a fault, nurturing, and fun to be around? There could be worse things in the world.
According to new consumer research from Leichtman Research Group, 38% of all households have at least one television set connected to the Internet via a video game system, a Blu-ray player, an Apple TV or Roku set-top box, and/or the TV set itself, up from 30% last year, and 24% two years ago. Video game systems are the key connected devices, as 28% of all households have a video game system connected to the Internet. Just 4% of all households are connected solely via an Internet-enabled TV set, and Apple TV or Roku set-tops are the only connected devices in 1% of all households. Overall, 13% of all adults watch video from the Internet via a connected device at least weekly, compared to 10% last year, and 5% two years ago. Use of connected devices remains skewed towards Netflix subscribers, with 35% of Netflix subscribers watching video from the Internet via a connected device weekly, compared to 5% weekly use among all non-Netflix subscribers. Other related findings in the report include:
Imagine if TV distributors started to charge consumers “usage fees” for watching TV shows -- live, time-shifted or whatever. Comcast levies “data use” caps for some apps, but not for its Xfinity Xbox app. Reed Hastings, chief executive officer of Netflix, says this means Comcast “no longer [is] following net neutrality principles.” Forget for a moment what Hastings sees as a big inequity: Comcast’s imposition of a “data usage” cap on Netflix’s app. Imagine if some of this thinking applied to the bigger traditional TV platform. What if you watched 15 shows a week, but your neighbor – who has a lot of time on his hands – logs in 40 shows? Say you both have the same TV distributor. But that distributor has a usage thing going -- and your neighbor’s shows amount to 40 gigabytes, and your TV time spent comes to 15 gigabytes. Should both of you pay the same amount? And while you think about that, think about other consumer price points -- like putting gas in your tank. This is where the proposed so-called “a la carte” cable network purchasing strategy -- which would make consumers pay for only the channels they get -- comes in. But it goes farther. Because in the digital world, channels matter less -- while programs, the specific videos, are key; Consumers don’t really think about this much apart from iTunes. Like cable, satellite, and telco operators, the Hulus and Netflixes of the world have all-you-can-eat monthly plans – for $7.99, $8.99 or whatever. If “usage” plans applied to traditional TV, trouble for all kinds of would break loose –-- for ESPN, if say you don’t watch sports; or Food Network, if say you aren’t at all interested in food TV programming. National advertisers would be in a panic. If cable channels -- or their programs -- no longer had 85% or 95% penetration of U.S. TV homes, if they had say 55% or 45% penetration, this would mightily upset the TV apple cart. We all know there are bigger financial and economic considerations that make the current traditional TV system work the way it does. But that system is being pushed around for big change.
Symbols and messages associated with social media are proliferating on TV, and they’re getting through to TV viewers, according to a new survey of 1,000 U.S. adult TV viewers by Accenture, which revealed high levels of recall for social media messaging, as well as high rates of social media activity in response to this kind of messaging. Overall 64% of those surveyed said they could recall seeing symbols and images associated with social media, including for example the Facebook “Like” button, while watching TV. In terms of specific symbols, 42% said they remembered seeing -- and understood how to interact with -- the Facebook “Like” symbol, while 18% said the same for Twitter hashtags appearing on TV, and 9% said the same for Shazam symbols. 28% said they recognized and new how to use QR codes that appeared on TV. What’s more, 33% of those surveyed reported actually responding to social media messaging on TV by, for example, “liking” a TV program, at 20%; scanning a QR code, at 11%; searching for a specific Twitter hashtag, at 7%; or scanning the Shazam symbol, at 5%. Among those who interacted with social media while watching TV, 43% said the did it to get more information about a show, product, or service; 32% used social media to get coupons or promotional codes; 31% to enter a contest or sweepstakes; 26% to watch more video; 26% to interact with others about a show or product; 21% to connect with others with similar interests; 20% to share or recommend a video or program; and 16% to make a purchase. Unsurprisingly, younger adults are more likely to respond to social media symbols and messages on TV. Among adults ages 18-24, 63% said they’d interacted with social media symbols while watching TV. That number dropped to 46% of 25-34 year olds, 44% of 35-44 year olds, 19% of 45-54 year olds, 25% of 55-64 year olds, and just 11% of respondents ages 65+. Meanwhile motivations varied by gender. Thus 39% of men and 48% of women who interacted with social media sites said they wanted more information about the show. Among women who interacted, 40% wanted coupons or promotion codes, and 34% went on social media to register or sign up for something. Among men who interacted, by contrast, 35% said they want to see more video, and 34% said they entered a contest or sweepstakes.