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Trend Watch: Twitter, Facebook and Social TV

Twitter Embraces Its Social Role in TV: Like so many other things that the Twitter community has established on its own (hashtags and retweets, for example), the company is now fully embracing the role it plays in supplementing the TV-watching experience of millions of people. [RRW]

Social Media and TV - Who's Talking, When and What About? : Social media continues to influence how consumers interact with brands and share content every day. Increasingly, TV viewers leverage social media as a platform to talk about and engage with TV content.

These conversations are not only opening new channels for consumer engagement with their favorite TV shows and fellow fans alike, but also are providing insight into which viewers are driving the conversations and when. [Nielson Wire]

Yahoo's IntoNow Provides Signs of Life for The Premier Digital Media Company: Yahoo! is known for acquiring startups and letting them languish. But IntoNow cranked out a whole new product--and a possible game-changer for the TV industry--in six months. Is this the beginning of something new? [Fast Company] Get the free IntoNow App on iTunes

MTV Exec: Social is a New Programming Platform: Many people are talking about how TV networks can leverage the power of social networks to help build their show audiences. But they may be missing the point. According to Dermot McCormack, EVP of Digital Media for MTV, social networks aren’t just for announcing when the next episode of Jersey Shore airs, but a whole new platform for media creation and distribution. [GigOM]

TV Isn't What it Used to Be: According to a recent Ypulse report, only 28% of students say they can’t live without TV (referring to traditional viewing), compared to 83% who can’t imagine life without music. Some students even prefer streaming video to traditional TV viewing; after all, it gives them what they want when they want it. What’s a TV company to do? [MediaPost]

In the U.S., Tablets are TV Buddies: The Nielsen Company​’s most recent research on mobile connected devices sheds new light on how consumers are using their tablets, eReaders and smartphones – and where they are using them, too. [Nielson Wire]

Multask Mania | Viewers Watch TV, Discuss on Social Sites: Almost 40% of TV viewers are discussing TV shows on social media sites, with almost three-quarters of TV viewers with broadband access, generally using the Internet at same time, per U.K.-based Ovum, a business/technology research firm. [MediaPost]

What's the Future of Social TV Look Like?: Real-time entertainment is what people are looking for–we always want something fresh to keep us up to date.  But with this demand for real-time entertainment, how has it affected traditional TV? [Silicon Angle]

The Future of TV, From Apple to ZeeBox: “The future of TV” has become a buzzword over the last few years – but what if it was time to stop talking about it and acknowledge that the future has already arrived? [TNW]

Barking Robot > Category > Social TV

Inspired by Steve Jobs, Stanford Grad Follows her Heart [VIDEO]

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Trend Watch: Essential Facts About the Video Game Industry

Quick. Tell me the age of the average game player. 12? 15? 17? Nope.

According to a new report from the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), the average game player age is 37.

Even more surprising is the finding that in 2011, 29% of gamers were over the age of 50. In all, 72% of American households play computer of video games.

Here are some other interesting stats from the 2011 Essential Facts About the Computer & Video Game Industry report released by ESA  on the demographics of video game players.

You can read the full executive summary after the jump.

Parents & Games

"Kids play video games for fun with the goal of progressing to the next level and eventually conquering the oppoent, whether that's another player or the computer.

What's more, the social aspect--sharing tactics, experience and explanations--help cemet what they've learned." ~ James Paul Glee, author of What Video Games Have to Teach us About Learning and Literacy

• 91% of the time parents are present at the time games are purchased or rented

• 86% of the time kids receive their parents' permission before purchasing or renting a game

• 9 out of 10 parents pay attention to the content of the games their kids play

• 68% believe game play provides mental stimulation or education

Top Four Reasons Parents Play with Their Kids

• 85% Because they're asked to

• 84% It's fun for the entire family

• 81% It's a good opportunity to socialize with the kids

• 57% It's a good opportunity to monitor game content

Video Games and Parental Controls

• 98% of parents are confident in the ESRB ratings

• 86% of parents are aware of the ESRB rating system

• 75% of parents believe that the parental controls are useful

• 80% of parents place time limits on video game playing

• 74% of parents place limits on Internet usage

Gender & Gamer Demographics

"There are games now for pretty much every age, every demographic." ~ Jesse Schell, professor of entertainment technology at Carnegie Mellon University

• 58% Male 42% Female

• Women age 18 or older represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (37%) than boys age 17 or younger (13%)

• 33% of gamers say that playing computer or video games is their favorite entertainment activity

How Gamers Play

"Gaming is productive. It produces positive emotion, stronger social relationships, a sense of accomplishment, and for players who are a part of a game community, a chance to build a sense of purpose."  ~ Jane McGonigal, PhD. author of Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World

• 55% of gamers play games on their phones or handheld device

• 65% of gamers play games with other gamers in person

• 47% play puzzle, board game, triva or card games

2011 Essential Facts: Video Game Industry

Infographic: Boomers, Gen X, Millennials & iGen Media Consumption

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

via MBAOnline.com | View Large

Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF Goes High Tech

Those cutle little "Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF boxes are going high tech!

Thanks to a partnership with Microsoft TAG, kids can now ask you to scan the barcode on the side of the box with your smartphone and donate any amount--on the spot.

No smartphone? No problem. You can also contribute $10 by texting the word "TOT" to UNICEF (864233).

Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF just for teachers 

• The Complete Teacher's Kit (ZIP)
• Send Home Letter to Parents on Class Participation
• K-2 & 3-6 Classroom Units Aligned with National Content Standards

FBI Child ID: A Free App to Locate Missing Children

There are apps to keep your finances in order, and apps to keep your data safe. Now the FBI is offering a free app that could help authorities locate your children if they go missing.

The free iPhone application is called FBI Child ID and can be found at the iTunes store.

People who download it will be able to store identifying information about their children, such as photos, scanned fingerprints, height, weight and physical identifiers, in one file that is readily accessible on an iPhone.

The app is available only for the iPhone, but the FBI says it plans to make it available for other mobile devices in the near future.

The information is not being collected or stored by law enforcement authorities or iTunes, and is accessible only on the mobile device, where it is saved until it is emailed in the event of an emergency.

 

 

 

 

Report: Minority Kids Spend Most of Their Waking Hours Plugged In

Minority children spend an average of 13 hours a day using mobile devices, computers, TVs and other media — about 4½ hours more than white kids, says a new report released earlier this month.

The findings, from Northwestern University, are being presented to childhood and telecommunications experts in Washington, D.C.

The results are from an analysis of two Kaiser Family Foundation surveys that tracked media use by kids 6 to 18.

Researchers analyzed that data to find out how black, Hispanic, Asian American and white youth use media for homework and for fun, and how long they're plugged in on any given day.

Among 8- to 18-year-olds, Asian Americans logged the most media use (13 hours, 13 minutes a day), followed by Hispanics (13 hours), blacks (12 hours, 59 minutes), and whites (8 hours, 36 minutes.)

via yourlife.usatoday.com

 

The report shows that compared with white children, minority youth:

• Watch TV and videos one to two hours more a day;
• Listen to music about an hour more a day;
• Use computers about 1½ hours more a day;
• Play video games 30 to 40 minutes longer a day. Black (84%) and Hispanic kids (77%) also are more likely to have TVs in their bedrooms and to eat meals in front of the TV.

Read more about the Kaiser Family Foundation report on minority kids and media use >>>

Trend Watch: Twitter Finds a Place in the Classroom

Students tap away at their cell phones, laptops and iPads during Enrique Legaspi's high-tech history lesson.

In some grade schools, pulling out these devices during class would result in a one-way ticket to the principal's office. But Legaspi encourages this behavior, as long as the kids are using Twitter.

A technology enthusiast, Legaspi learned how to incorporate the social network into his 8th-grade curriculum while attending the annual Macworld convention in San Francisco earlier this year.

"I had an aha moment there," he said. "I said to myself, 'This is going to really engage my students.' "

Teachers across the country have been incorporating Twitter into classrooms for a few years, but the site's adoption by educational institutions appears to be limited. Read More >>>

Related: Facebook for Educators

 

 

Infographic: What Different Generations Do Online

via pewinternet.org

The primary adult data in this report come from a Pew Internet Project survey conducted from April 29 to May 30, 2010.

For more information on these and other surveys cited in this report, including survey dates of all activities cited, please see the Methodology section at the end of the "Generations 2010" report.

Speak Up National Findings 2010: How Students Are Leveraging Technology for Learning

Earlier this month 2011 Project Tomorrow released the report “The New 3 E’s of Education: Enabled, Engaged and Empowered – How Today’s Students are Leveraging Emerging Technologies for Learning” at a Congressional Briefing held in Washington, D.C..

The Speak Up 2010 project surveyed almost 300,000 students (along with 43,000 parents, 35,000 teachers, 2000 librarians and 3500 administrators) from over 6500 private and public schools last fall about how they're using - and how they want to be using - technology for learning.

Key findings:

• 67 percent of parents said they would purchase a mobile device for their child to use for schoolwork if the school allowed it, and 61 percent said they liked the idea of students using mobile devices to access online textbooks.

• 53 percent of middle and high school students reported that the inability to use cell phones, smart phones or MP3 players was the largest obstacle when using technology in school.

• Additionally, 71 percent of high school students and 62 percent of middle school students said that the number one way schools could make it easier to use technology would be to allow greater access to the digital content and resources that Internet firewalls and school filters blocked.

• Parents are increasingly supportive of online textbooks. Two-thirds of parents view online textbooks as a good investment to enhance student achievement compared to 21 percent in 2008. However, E-textbooks are still a relatively novel concept in the classroom. Slightly over one-third of high school students report they are currently using an online textbook or other online curriculum as part of their regular schoolwork.

• Nearly 30 percent of high school students have experienced some type of online learning.

Speak Up National Findings 2010

Infographic: Mobile Social Network Usage by Age

via blog.nielsen.com

In a demographic view of social networking activity on mobile devices, women were found do use their phones to “tweet” and “friend” 10% more than men.

And while social networking is commonly thought of as something for “the kids,” the 35-54 age group had more active mobile social networkers than any other group.

via Nielsen Wire

Infographic: If Social Media Were a High School

View LARGE | via itsc.oetc.org

Clementine, a 20 month-old, Discovers the iPad [VIDEO]

Trend Watch: Teen Girl Communication and Social Media Use

Kristen Purcell presents Pew Internet findings on teen communication trends and social network site use as part of a joint research project with the Girl Scout Research Institute.

The research report also features findings from the Girl Scout Research Institute's latest study of social network site use among teen girls.

Pew Internet/Girl Scout Joint Webinar on Social Media

View more presentations from Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project.

Learning: Is There An iPad App For That?

A new report by the Joan Ganz Cooney Center takes a look at the mobile media revolution that is changing the lives of adults, and now children of all ages, under way across the globe.

This report focuses on how new forms of digital media are influencing very young children and their families in the United States and how we can deploy smart mobile devices and applications-apps, for short-in particular, to help advance their education.

It does so in three parts: Part One discusses new trends in smart mobile devices, specifically the pass-back effect, which is when an adult passes his or her own device to a child.

Part Two presents the results of three new studies that were undertaken to explore the feasibility and effectiveness of using apps to promote learning among preschool- and early-elementary-aged children. Though designed to complement one another, each study approached mobile learning from a different angle.

Finally, Part Three discusses the implications these findings have for industry, education, and research.

Learning. Is There An App for That?

Download the PDF