US broadcasters NBC and ABC have launched new iPad apps, but neither focuses on streaming live TV. Instead, NBC Live offers second-screen social features and interactivity that sync with shows being watched on TV, while ABC Video Bookstore packages archive news footage with photo galleries and interactive timelines.
Both applications are now live on Apple's App Store, and are free to download – although ABC's makes use of in-app payments to buy individual "video books". The apps show that US broadcasters are looking beyond live streaming on the iPad, in the face of continuing legal tussles between cable TV providers and networks over how tablets fit into existing licensing models.
NBC Live is the latest example of the interest in social TV from broadcasters, as they look to capitalise on the fact that an increasing proportion of their viewers are watching TV with a smartphone or tablet on their laps.
Armed with the slogan "Don't just watch TV, interact with TV!", it serves up trivia quizzes, polls, cast commentaries and other titbits, synchronised with the show that is being watched by the user. Video highlights of shows are also available from within the app, as is the chance to: "Join in a hosted social feed starring you, your fellow fans, and sometimes even insiders from the show."
ABC Video Bookstore takes a different angle, offering themed "video books" that combine video footage from ABC News with text, photos and interactivity. Two video books have been released for the launch of the app: A Modern Fairy Tale and The Amanda Knox Story.
The first focuses on the upcoming royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, while the second hones in on the most high-profile defendant in the Meredith Kercher murder case in Italy. More video books will be added to the store regularly, according to its App Store listing.
NBC Live is not available in the UK App Store, but ABC Video Bookstore is, although the in-app pricing is in dollars, with both video books costing $7.99 to download within the application.
The releases come as Time Warner Cable and Viacom battle in the US courts over whether the former has the right to stream the latter's channels in its TWCable TV app for iPad.
Time Warner pulled Viacom's channels from the app earlier this month after the network objected to their inclusion, but both companies are now seeking declaratory judgement in their favour - a ruling which will have a strong impact on the tablet strategies of other cable TV providers and broadcasters in the US.
