• by kyle , Daisy Whitney , August 30, 2005

GSN - The Game Show Network - likes to boast that it's the TiVo-proof network because it programs more than 100 hours each week of interactivity that keeps viewers tuned into shows and ads. GSN is putting that moniker to the test this fall when it introduces its "GSNI service," a branded slate of 10,000 interactive episodes of GSN programming that lets viewers play along with games, games shows, and ads in real time using a remote control. It's already working in Time Warner's Hawaii market, where about 75 percent of the GSN audience has been interacting for more than a year with ads and programs in a test of the network's one-screen ITV suite, says John Roberts, Senior Vice President, Interactive Entertainment with the network.

Interactive ads that are part of an interactive show generate six times the usage of stand-alone interactive ads, according to GoldPocket, which powers GSN's interactivity. As cable operators roll out GSNI, they'll have the underlying technology from GoldPocket in place to sell local interactive spots on GSN or other networks.