Behind the Red button

Red button interactive TV is now primarily used by broadcasters and viewers as programme enhancement. Sport or multi-stage events are particularly well served by this. Voting and competitions are also common. In 2009, 11% of all X Factor votes were via the red button and the red button is often viewers’ preferred entry mechanic for competitions.

However, there are also additional opportunities for advertisers around this red button content. Typically the on-air sponsor of a show would continue their relationship into this space.

 For example, Ford sponsors Sky’s Football First on Saturday nights. Viewers can choose, via the remote, which match they want to watch or to access alternative commentary or make a bet. In this area, Ford has an additional presence that supports their association with the on-air.

Interactive TV sponsorships like this are nowadays most likely to be part of a a wider reaching or “360 degree” sponsorship where the sponsoring brand can get close to the programme brand and its content pretty much wherever it appears; for example on the show’s website, at related events or through licensing.

The ITV 24/7 Interactive Menu

This allows consumers to press red whatever the time of day - on ITV1, ITV2, ITV3 and ITV4, cable or satellite - and gain access to interactive programming and exclusive content.

Pressing red overlays a menu across the bottom of the screen that lets consumers access more content from a variety of ITV shows such as Coronation Street, The FA Cup, This Morning and I’m a Celebrity Get me Out of Here. Once you’ve selected one of these, you can view additional video, enter competitions or just get more information on the programme. 

On this main menu of the interactive area there is an opportunity for the sponsoring advertiser to feature their own branded area, hosted video (either part of their TV campaigns or bespoke content) as well as competitions and direct response elements.

Harvey's sponsorship of Coronation Street is one of the more high profile commercial sponsorships. The enhanced TV behind the show has allowed Harvey's to create a unique brand experience. It utilises interactive TV technology by not only showing 'The making of' but also creating a furniture selector based on viewers input. The application is updated over time to keep it fresh.

Behind the red button, viewers see a Coronation Street menu screen showing the TV in quarter screen and featuring 5 interactive options.

• Catch Ups - for last weeks big story lines. Press select for key stories from each of 4 episodes.
• Previews - for the coming episodes. Press select for key plotlines for the 4 upcoming episodes.
• News & Gossip -Press select for the juicy bits coming soon.
• Video - Press select for a loop of clips from last weeks episodes.
• Win a fabulous wardrobe with Harvey's- press yellow.

2.6 million Sky viewers press red every month over Coronation spending up to 10 minutes in the service

The interactive area also includes information about the sponsoring brand. Here Harvey’s has run a series of competitions. One offered the challenged viewers to find the characters from the idents whilst another asked a series of lifestyle questions to determine what items from the Harvey’s range would best suit them in order to win prizes.

You can experience the Harvey’s interactive yourself in our online interactive emulator, here.

Harvey’s have also used their interactive sponsorship to drive direct response. They offered discounts to visitors to its area of the soap's iTV service. Viewers texted in to receive a unique 8-digit code to their mobile phones which was then redeemable in Harvey’s stores to activate their discount.

The campaign reported that 30 per cent of respondents to an SMS offer it ran as part of an interactive TV (iTV) campaign redeemed their mobile vouchers in its stores, making it more than 10 times more effective than an average direct mail campaign.

You can read this direct response case study here.

For ITV’s FA Cup coverage, the presenters remained in the studio after the game to broadcast a further 30 minutes of post match analysis that was broadcast behind the red button. This red button content was promoted by the presenters in the main show and also via an interactive on-screen trigger. 30,000 Sky and Cable viewers pressed red to watch the show, sponsored on screen by bet365.

I’m a celebrity get me out of here’s red button area was sponsored by Iceland. Over the period of the show, 2.4 million adults used the interactive service with 40%  (1.5m) of interactors visiting the Iceland area more then once AND 17% visiting nearly every episode. 75% of interactors believe the service was good/very good and 92% of service users reported that they were likely to buy/already bought from Iceland.

2009 saw ITV’s Interactive TV coverage of Tour de France offer live streaming behind the Red button in full screen for the first time ever. Viewers could press red over the ITV4 programming to access the service or view it from ITV’s 24.7 Interactive Main menu at any time. Across a 5 day period, half a million Sky and Virgin viewers used the service to see the latest news and competitions, with over 250,000 watching video of the race live – triple the number of views in 2008.

“It was an important development to offer the full screen option this year and one that we have had lots of positive viewer feedback for.  The numbers prove there is a strong audience for this type of content – effectively using ITV Interactive as a channel in its own right”

Peter Mossman, Head of Production at ITV

Games

Another opportunity and one that's well established in the kids' multichannel market is the opportunity to brand games.
For example, Turner Media Innovations offers the opportunity to run sponsored games on their Interactive TV service. Viewers can access this service by tuning into Cartoon Network, Cartoon Network Too or Boomerang and pressing the red button on their remote control

They offer a whole range of games, from action adventures to arcade classics. Many feature their best known characters and brands, which viewers have a strong emotional connection with.

They operate two types of games; iTV games, where the viewer presses red and is taken into another screen or eTV games which overlay a game onto the content being viewed. Bespoke packages can be arranged with advertisers, but typically they can sponsor the Interactive Services Menu, Cartoon Network Games or the loading pages within existing games.

The Transformers red button game for Hasbro allowed users to choose the character they wanted to play, and attracted nearly 60,000 players with games sessions lasting an average of 8.4 minutes.

TMI report that their advertiser-related games achieve an average 130,000 - 150,000 game plays per month.

Interactive TV contacts

ITV
Candie Harris
Interactive Sales Manager
020 7156 6781
candie.harris@itv.com

Sky
Jamie Fitzgerald
Interactive Advertising & VOD Controller
0207 705 5946
jamie.fitzgerald@bskyb.com

Turner Media Innovations
Nick Welch
Digital and Commercial Director, EMEA
020 7693 1882
nick.welch@turner.com