Social TV Startup ACTV8.me Moves Into tCommerce With Digital Wallets For Television Viewers Interacting With Television Shows

written by: Richard Kastelein

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Published on Wednesday, 25 April 2012 10:51

ACTV8.me now enables TV networks to monetize an entirely new space, the distribution of digital currency. As major innovations are being made with Google Wallet (Google Inc., Public) and PayPal (a subsidiary of eBay Inc., Public), ACTV8.me is positioned to turn the mobile wallet opportunity into a huge revenue play for the TV broadcast sector. After only two months of deployment, the early adoption behavior is remarkable. The early data shows that the app user is interacting an average of 10 times per episode and accepting over 2 offers per episode. Use and adoption are driven via providing real interactive entertainment. Over and above true interactive entertainment, the app becomes a vehicle for distribution of advertiser based digital value to smart phones and rewarding consumers for interacting with major TV shows through ACTV8's second screen apps.

Considering the size of the TV audiences that are exposed to the ACTV8 technology, the potential to drive adoption is enormous. On one episode alone of "Celebrity Apprentice" there are approximately 10 million total viewers that are exposed to the opportunity to interact and be rewarded. This incentive will certainly help migrate consumers from the old fashioned wallet to new wallets on mobile devices. Early trials include mass marketing campaigns with Walgreens (Walgreen Co) retail tie in, and with General Motors (General Motors Company), Kraft (Kraft Foods Inc.)and O Cedar.

To further its move into the digital mobile wallet space, ACTV8.me announced an innovative partnership with Tango Card to provide a loyalty and reward mechanism for ACTV8.me's interactive second screen apps. The currency and rewards redemption enabled via the Tango card include tie-ins with Amazon (Amazon.com Inc.), The Gap (The Gap Inc.), Fandango, Target (Target Corporation) , Nike (NIKE, Inc.), and Starbucks Corporation.

Major networks and producers including Fox Broadcasting Company, Mark Burnett, Oxygen TV, Virgin Produced and others have teamed with ACTV8.me to provide compelling interactive entertainment with second screen apps. Some of these apps include powerful social features that will enhance how viewers watch and engage and virally share offers from their favorite shows. Tango Card will manage the delivery and use of the value earned through many of these programs - providing incentives for engagement ranging from leader board toppers to real reward from advertisers for social content sharing and coupon downloads. This opens unique opportunities for advertisers and brands to connect with consumers in digital, social, and highly quantifiable ways.

Tango Card has a history of putting gift cards and rewards where they've never been before. David Leeds, Founder and CEO of Seattle-based Tango Card says:

"Their direct partnerships with the largest networks and the most popular primetime shows allow them to engage viewers in a unique and incredibly defensible way. We are thrilled to be working alongside ACTV8 to usher in this new era of interactive TV."

The partnership's goal is to deepen viewer engagement and enhance advertising opportunities. The partnership begins in the synchronized Celebrity Apprentice app which features exclusive content, info on the celebs, trivia, and games. Through the second screen apps, the leader board toppers of both the East and West Coasts win Tango Cards that can be redeemed at www.tangocard.com/actv8 .

ACTV8.me works alongside major TV networks and production partners to empower hit TV shows, delivering a complete global media integration platform and bringing new user experiences to life in next-generation TV connectivity. ACTV8.me Founder and CEO Brian Shuster predicts, "and as media consumption habits change dramatically, ACTV8.me and its partners are poised to bring new value to the networks, the advertisers, and most importantly the consumer. Tango Card was an obvious choice for us when we needed a forward-thinking and versatile rewards partner."