SocialSamba launches social TV platform for fan fiction

Remember SocialSamba? We uncovered the San Francisco/Minneapolis-based scripted social networking startup back in November after we wanted to learn more about the technology behind USA Network’s Hashtag Killer platform for Psych. The “standard” we predicted the company would help create is coming true.

‘Food Network On TV’ app launches with new social features

The Food Network continues to invest a ton of resources into second screen apps helping to define the future of TV networks. They recently launched a delicious Cupcake app, and this week they released “Food Network On TV,” a free app for iPhone and iPod touch. The new app, which was originally under a different name, now includes…

How NBCU plans to scale social gaming across its TV brands

This week NBCU announced it was rolling out a new social gaming platform across its TV brands. Called the Universal Games Network, or UGN, the idea grew out of USA Network’s success with the Character Arcade. Fans can play games, unlock content, win reward points and redeem them for real and virtual goods. And it’s all connected with Facebook. We were curious how the platform will work across NBCU, so we interviewed Jesse Redniss, SVP of Digital for the USA Network brand properties.

NBC Politics app launches with election map game

One of the biggest trends in social TV these days is the integration of gaming in TV apps. NBC and msnbc.com launched the NBCPolitics iPad and iPhone app today, and while it features political news and video, an interactive game lets users take on the pundits and play their own election scenarios. Political junkies can start with a blank battleground map — with every state as a toss-up — or pick from NBC’s current projection or past election results….

Briefs: TV viewing dips, connected TV, Zeebox award

A few short updates from around the industry today, beginning with a new Nielsen report:

- TV viewing dips again – Nielsen released a new report today that found the number of American households with access to a television set and a TV signal is shrinking slightly for the second year in a row.

- Connected TV set growth – Connected TV set shipments will grow to 70% during 2016, predicts IMS Research. By that year, more than 80% of connected TV sets shipped worldwide will have built-in Wi-Fi.

- Zeebox wins award – Zeebox was named the overall winner at the Connected TV Awards in London. In the “outstanding connected TV service” category, BBC iPlayer, BBC News connected TV app and JAZZTEL’s JAZZBOX came away with an award.

- Social a big deal for networks – You already know this, but we thought we’d share this USA Today story on social TV with a quote from Lost Remote’s own Natan Edelsburg.

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Oprah’s Facebook ‘Thank You Game’ aims for global gratitude

Oprah is hoping to spread gratitude to half a billion people around the globe with a new viral Facebook game tied to her OWN cable network. The idea is to encourage people to thank someone they know — in real life or virtually — and then click the button, “I said thank you,” which in turns shares it with their Facebook friends. People who play are entered to win a “personal thank you” from Oprah herself. “This is something we’ve never tried before,” explained Oprah. “Let’s see what we can do together. Can we change the world? I think so.”

NHL app lets fans play predictive game in sync with TV

The pro sports leagues have a tremendous opportunity to capitalize on the second screen, and the NHL has rolled out the most promising synchronized experience we’ve seen among the leagues to date. Called NHL Preplay, the iPad app (iPhone coming soon) enables fans to predict what will happen next in live games, competing head-to-head with their friends — the first app of its kind in US pro sports. It launched just in time for the NHL playoffs, and we gave it a spin with the Phoenix-Nashville game.

Sponsored: Can Smart TVs improve viewer engagement? Endemol, Shazam and TVGuide.com speak out

Smart TV Insider has recently released an absolutely free 4000+ word Smart TV report with contributions from senior representatives at Endemol USA, TVGuide.com and Shazam. The report’s split into four key topic areas including using technology to increase engagement with content, the threat of OTT to traditional broadcast models, social TV and the rise of second-screen engagement and expected market movements through 2012 and beyond…

The Weather Channel turns 30, launches more social website

Thirty years ago today, The Weather Channel was born, a network dedicated to providing essential information 24 hours a day on TV. The social web didn’t exist in 1982, but today the TV brand boasts 60 million unique monthly visitors, the #2 all-time downloaded iPad app, the #5 all-time downloaded iPhone app and a massive social reach that includes a unique partnership with Twitter to curate real-time conversations around the weather.

Inside look at NBCU’s first Digital NewFront

Last night’s NBCU NewFront felt like Willy Wonka had built a social TV factory. While Occupy protests took over downtown, an intimate crowd packed into Skylight West on 36th Street and 10th Ave to enjoy NBCU’s first ever Digital NewFront. The first part of the night was a fun presentation hosted by NBCU talent and execs followed by a carnival of social TV (that included creating a video of yourself within The Voice or a Weather Channel broadcast) and interactive digital displays of the media company’s sixty different digital offerings….

Mark Cuban invests in social TV startup Flingo

We uncovered Flingo back in November of last year, a company cofounded by Bit-Torrent cofounder Ashwin Navin. Back then the company was focused on building connected TV apps for a wide range of television and entertainment clients. At CES in January the company made some big social announcements around their platform with launch partner A+E Networks. This February the company raised $7 million and today they’ve announced…

Twitter to stream live video in partnership with Pepsi

This week, in a first, Twitter announced that they will be streaming live video this summer as part of an ad partnership with Pepsi. Embedding video within tweets has become an important way or TV advertisers to drive buzz and conversations around their spots via the 140-character platform. “If your Promoted Tweet contains a link to a video or photo from a partner provider, it automatically expands to show that media within the timeline…”

iPad or sex? Offbeat facts about tablets in homes

Thought that overly-provocative headline would get you. Yahoo sent us an infographic that breaks down some offbeat survey questions about tablets in homes. Turns out, people like their tablets. In some cases, perhaps a little too much. For starters, families say they fight over their tablets more than their TV remotes. The survey found 15% of respondents say they’d give up their car for an entire year…

‘Ru Paul’s Drag Race’ success with social TV

In February we wrote about Logo’s hit show, “Ru Paul’s Drag Race” and its impressive use of Tumblr as part of an extensive social TV strategy. As the season comes to an end, the network has some impressive numbers and successes to report. Last week’s finale trended nationally on Twitter, and the show’s Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr and GetGlue reach grew significantly across the season….

E! emphasizes social reach and tablet friendliness at upfront

NBCU’s E! pulled out all the stops at their upfront in NYC last night. Kardashians, Jonas and more poured into Gotham Hall as Ryan Seacrest hosted a night that unleashed a rebranding of the network, more scripted content and a mission to own pop culture like no brand has ever before. A big social TV moment happened at the beginning when Seacrest stated that E is not just the number ten network on Twitter, but the number ten brand. Here’s a closer look at E!’s rebranding, social TV infused programming and more.

Facebook announces organ donor initiative on GMA

ABC has been promoting a “life-saving” feature that Facebook would unveil on GMA, and this morning Mark Zuckerberg said Facebook is launching a organ donor initiative. Starting today, users in the US and UK will be able to add that they’re organ donors to their Timelines. If they’re not, they can find links to official organ donation registries and enroll. “We think that people can really help spread awareness of organ donation and that they want to participate in this to their friends,” Zuckerberg said in the interview.

Inside look at social TV at the 2012 Comedy Awards

What more can one hope for than a night filled with almost every major comedian and hilarious TV actor and actress. The 2012 Comedy Awards taped at New York City’s Hammerstein Ballroom Saturday night, and we were there covering the red carpet and ceremony. Social TV was everywhere. A #ComedyCentral-covered step and repeat, a hilarious social media bit in the show with Ty Burrell and Andy Richter, red carpet interviews for ComedyCentral.com with Julie Klausner and insights from some of TV’s most hilarious stars (including Amy Poehler and Louis C.K.) on living in a digital. Here’s an inside look at social TV highlights…

Briefs: Discovery Channel, Digg, Hulu, Simulmedia

A few quick industry updates from around the web, acquisition rumor edition….

- Discovery to buy Revision3? The Discovery Channel is in talks to buy the video content network Revision3 for $30 to 40 million, reports TechCrunch.

- Washington Post to buy Digg? That’s the rumor from The Next Network, but AllThingsD follows up to report WaPo will buy the tech team, not the site or technology.

- Hulu’s free ride about over – Hulu will soon require users to authenticate to prove they subscribe to a participating cable or satellite service to view TV shows, say reports.

- Simulmedia raises $6 million – The TV ad targeting company raises a new round of funding

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What the ‘Instagrams for video’ may mean for TV

We all know that Instagram sold to Facebook for a boatload of money, and now all eyes are on two social video apps that are growing fast. Viddy and Socialcam both feature top-notch investors, high-flying valuations and a surge of new users. Viddy, for example, is reportedly valued at $300 million off its last investment round, and it saw 5.5 million downloads over an 11-day period. Socialcam says its app was downloaded 4 million times in just two days. And today there’s news that Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg created an account on Viddy, uploading a video of his dog.

Social TV continues global push with new startup TunedIn

The US and the UK have become competitive social TV markets with a growing list of second screen apps vying for attention. And now the social TV wave is spreading in Germany with the launch of Tweek.tv and now with TunedIn, a Berlin-based startup that just rolled out the 2.0 version of its iPhone app. “TunedIn aspires to connect audiences by bringing viewers together in a collective viewing experience,” explains Justin Scull, co-founder and CEO. First in Europe, and then in the US as well.