ESPN InPlay Whitepaper/Case Study

Fresh Digital Group
ESPN InPlay Whitepaper/Case Study:
2012 US Open Tennis Tournament
2nd Screen Companion

We Strategize. We Execute. We Deliver. On All Screens.

Old Media

We used to have a filtered, one-way view of events in the
world from media. America‘s perspective of it, or the
world‘s perspective of that event, would be seen through
the lens of the way that the media described it to them…

Now with more interactive social media, people want to
know what everyone else thinks and we‘re getting this
inside-out, multi-perspective view of what‘s going on right
now, as it happens from everybody else that‘s watching
the same thing we‘re watching.

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New Media Impact:
2nd screen can help to optimize marketing spend
While TV and display are attractive to marketers to generate immediate reach,
there is increasing evidence that the impact of these types of advertising media
are on the decline. Why? Consumers aren‘t seeing the ads. Some companies
have reported that more than 60% of all display ads are not viewed or are only
in view for less than a second online. TV has an attention-deficit problem --
more than 84% of people are doing something else while watching it. Thus, it
takes great skill to ensure you are on the right programs or sites at the right
time to make sure your message is getting through.

The solution lies in mobile and a cross-screen advertising strategy, and daily
there is growing evidence around the effectiveness of 2nd screen engagement.
Since mobile is a lean-forward experience, you have a captive audience who
can not only consume your message but can also engage for longer periods of
time. That‘s key for any brand looking to drive both awareness and
engagement, ultimately resulting in demand and word-of-mouth. Thus mobile
is the ad effectiveness platform and has proven in several studies to provide
brand lift.

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Why the 2nd Screen Matters
The evolution in what people do while watching TV has been widely covered in
both the consumer and trade press. For certain kinds of popular content,
consumers are beginning to expect tailored experiences to be available. The
most sophisticated smart device users are disappointed when they are not.

There are three things driving this:

Increased smart device ownership by an increasingly tech-savvy user base.
Improved digital infrastructure, both in and out of the home.
The digitization of other activity in a consumer‘s life.

Consumers have become increasingly technology-literate and this has trickled
down into their TV consumption, affecting long-established habits. What would
previously have been considered ‗sophisticated‘ TV activities such as
streaming TV online and purchasing digital content are now common. The
multi-screen home is also now commonplace, with many households owning a
number of laptops, smartphones or tablet computers.

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A Few Facts, Stats & Survey Learnings
• 63% of consumers watch TV while using their tablets
• 41% of the tablet owners surveyed said that the total time that they spent watching TV is devoted to
a two-screen experience that switches back and forth from the TV to the tablet.
• 36 % of two-screen users said that their attention is primarily on their tablet while watching TV. The
same percentage of consumers surveyed said that they split their time equally between their tablet
and TV.
• 28%of consumers surveyed said that the TV was the primary screen that they paid attention to.
This suggests that the tablet is more than just a complementary screen for TV viewers – instead it
is being used as a main screen that consumers are spending substantial time with.
• 25% of two-screen viewers visited a network or show‘s Web site or app while watching TV.
• 12% of consumers in the study looked for information from a show being watched. 16% of
consumers in the study watched a video clip that related to the show being watched.
• Shopping on mobile devices will ring up $20.7B this year, and $5B will come from tablets.
• 12% of consumers bought an advertised product while watching TV.
• Purchases on tablets are generally average $10 higher than those on phones.

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Types of 2nd Screen Experiences
Connect TV Second screen enables the user to have a more personal
and immersive experience with their television program of choice. Users can
view additional content, such as extra scenes or previews, or participate in
real time polls regarding the shows they are watching. This breaks the notion
that the user is simply a spectator and engages them with meaningful
interaction with the programs they‘re passionate about.

Social TV Utilizing Social Media on a Second Screen allows for users to
ultimately experience TV in an unique fashion. Social-TV permits users to
communicate in real-time what their thoughts and feelings are in relation to a
program or sports event. Status updates and tweets are already firmly present
in the mobile environment, therefore connecting it with an everyday activity
such as watching TV is the next logical step. Brands can create their own
dialogue with a consumer around the television content they are watching, and
because they‘re already interacting socially and communicating on multiple
devices, this conversation can happen organically.

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Multiscreen is Necessary

It is now time for providers in the value chain to step forward
and meet consumer expectations for the second screen; not
because they can, but because they should.

It‘s time to do more exciting, innovative things in an area with
proven potential to change the way audiences consume TV.

There is a perfect storm on the horizon that sees consumer
appetite and commercial potential come crashing together via
a powerful companion experience.

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The consumer is taking control
• Moving from mass
consumption to
personalized viewing
experiences

• Fundamental change in
the broadcaster / audience
relationship

• Social and mobile
platforms actually drive
audiences to watch more
television content

• What‘s daunting to TV
programmers is the
incredible interactivity and
engagement possible from
the touch screen devices
that are now competing for
attention in the living room.

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ESPN InPlay Showcase


ESPN InPlay: LIVE 2nd Screen Trivia Experience
ESPN InPlay was a cross-platform mobile web
experience built for the 2012 US Open Tennis
Tournament. Built utilizing HTML5 and responsive web
design to produce a fully functional backend, the app
was equipped with a customized CMS to enable real-
time product updates during broadcast times. This
allowed for a rich experience, where the user was able
to interact with predictive and historical trivia
questions as well as utilize Twitter and Facebook to
see what others were saying about the match. The user
could also instantly jump into a conversation and
tweet a response or comment to their Facebook wall.

Features:
- Social Rewards
- Live Trivia
- Predictive Questioning
- Leaderboard
Best Practices in growing
- Prize Incentives
audience engagement

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Trivia Social Login & Data Collection

Players were able to
login via Facebook.

Players were
prompted to give their
email address for
prize redemption.

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Predictive Questioning

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Predictive Question Functionality
One of the key features during the trivia, was developing a predictive questioning backend with the ESPN
editorial dept. This was unique for a live action broadcast because we were able to create a relevant content
extension. For example, since predictive questions were based on two players who were featured on the TV,
what happens to a predictive question when the coverage shows another match and the earlier predictive
question hadn't been answered yet? Well, we we worked to close that loop hole by separating predictive
question logic from the players. Thus a predictive question is completely open ended and anything can be
asked.

Customized CMS
tool, built
specifically for the
ESPN Editorial
Team to utilize for
live broadcast
questioning.

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Push Alerts

Players were alerted based
on the outcome of the
predictive question.

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General Trivia during broadcast downtime

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Leaderboard & Twitter Feed

• Social Sharing & Live
Twitter Feed

• AMEX Member Rewards:
Sync & Save

• Live Trivia Leaderboard

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Media Promotion
ESPN promoted the InPlay experience during live broadcasts, commercial breaks,
on the ESPN's breaking news ticker, FDG promoted it on blogs, Facebook, etc.

Trivia players were encouraged to follow along with the experience on their
smartphone or tablet by watching the live matches broadcast on ESPN2 from 7-
11pm Monday through Friday throughout the US Open Tennis Tournament.

All of this helps to bring brand consideration into the real world for consumers.
What we‘ve learned is not to create content for contents sake and to not lose their
attention. This appeals to the advertiser and the network partner.

We‘ve also learned that ideally, creative can drive the look and feel, but taking in
real time research to optimize the experience is also important. And let‘s not forget
that the social conversation, is content. And we all know content is king.

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Amex Benefits
Membership Rewards
• Featuring Rewards
messaging & Info
• Link to external site
Sync & Save
• Featuring Sync messaging &
info
Visiting the Open
• Links to external site
Access
• Featuring cardholder access
messaging & info
• Link to external site.

―We're really thinking that this is a bigger cultural shift," said Lou Paskalis, VP-global media content development and
mobile marketing at American Express. Lou says the company envisions consumers using mobile devices not only to
chat and communicate, but also to look for product details and make purchases. Consumers may not mind marketing
messages being placed properly on new screens when they accompany something that benefits the fan.

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Front page web placement

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On-screen media engagement

Sponsorship
Tie- In

Live Broadcast
Advertisement

Repeat User
Engagement

When media can influence multiscreen engagement, its easiest when on screen sponsorship tie-ins
push actions to viewers. Of course there was a spike in traffic when it was promoted on air, but we look
forward to refining the on-screen engagement to drive all types of behavior: from shopping, to tweeting,
to contests.

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Results
• ESPN InPlay experienced 10x the amount of
anticipated user traffic for the product.

• 100% growth, day over day

• 20,000 Visitors per night

• In the 2 weeks of airtime the product received traffic
flow of 100,000+ users

―For ESPN, mobile has become virtually indispensable.
For the network‘s coverage of live games, up to 50% of
online usage comes from mobile. Thus, the key for
advertisers is managing that connectedness to a live
event.‖ --David Roter, SR. Dir. Digital Sales & Strategy,
ESPN


MultiScreen can & does..
• Enable new business models

• Drive more content consumption

• Personalize content for 2nd screen viewing

• Increase Audiences

• Create Audience Direct Revenue

• Increase Advertising Revenue

• Increase Operational Agility

• Increase Business Efficiency, Create OPEX savings

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Learnings
Integrate, integrate, integrate. Brands need to understand how their customers use all types of
media, design strategies for each channel, and integrate messaging across them. Advertisers
want reach and 2nd screen can provide it.

Social matters. Brand IQ around social is higher with 2nd screen and using the social channel
via the 2nd screen can empower the user. Can the user control the content?

Count correctly. Different devices are used differently and metrics and conversion goals need to
reflect that. Identify the paths to conversion based on the devices that your consumers use. The
Challenge is keeping up where consumers are experiencing an ad and measure across the divide.

Optimize. Since consumers rely on search to connect sessions across screens, brands need to
insist on keyword consistency across campaigns and devices. Continue to invest in search engine
optimization (SEO) to maintain a healthy presence in SERPs and enjoy the same rankings in the
mobile world as in the desktop world.

Win. Any good plan should be half based on content and context and the other half by audience
and intelligence. Thus for brands there is enormous opportunities to innovate and drive even
higher monetization, tailor promotions to users and make it easier for advertisers to dynamically
adapt campaigns across devices.

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Key Findings
Data is Important. There are still challenges to targeting and marketers need data on
what to do to create better scale and effectiveness. But in order for multiscreen to work
there needs to be consistent measurement and metrics between the different formats.

Tablets are king. Engagement on tablets surpasses engagement on smartphones.
And higher engagement aids advertisers. Thus, across key dimensions – use &
consumption, the receptivity and action related to advertising, and the activity of
shopping – tablet users are more easily engaged. Tablets are a media consumption
hub, with nearly 70% of tablet users reporting that their tablet is an ―entertainment
device.‖

Creative drives Consumption. Make creative the center of the environment. The future
is real cross-platform measurement. Today it‘s the audiences choice & ads with media
should be more rich.

.

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5 Ways to bring a 2nd Screen experience to TV
More information – simple and effective, if you‘ve got content with strong engagement, people are going to
want more information about the cast, the story, etc. IMDB sees traffic spike at commercial breaks and so
will your mobile site and/or app. When trying to encourage multiscreen behavior, let viewers know that
there‘s something waiting for them, right now, that they can‘t get elsewhere – a separate ending, interviews
with the cast, clues to an upcoming episode.

Interaction – engagement is a challenge to define, but any advertiser would prefer that someone take an
action of any kind over them sitting passively. That action might be commercial (a registration or even
purchase) but it might also be simply brand related. Take a virtual test drive of the hero‘s car or enter to win
a sponsored trip to the set.

Influence outcomes – reality TV has trained us that we can be part of the show. Voting, user- generated
storylines and submitted content are powerful mechanisms for viewer loyalty and viral reach.

Product discovery – consumers may shy away from some advertising, but they (hopefully) embrace the
products and services being pitched. The second screen is a natural shopping companion to the television.

Education and Self improvement – the growth of how-to, food and personal growth programming should
remind us that the television is where many people get the inspiration and motivation for growth. The
television is the perfect place to discover a new exercise program, but a mobile device is the place to make
it real, to get a walk-through of the specifics, chart progress and to interact with others who have made it, not
to mention purchase related products.

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Success Metrics
Importance of UX
Acknowledging the importance of the UX has to be the foundation of any hyper-media
strategy, where the consumers‘ attention to a single content theme moves from one
device and format to another.

It‘s clear that people are willing to have a second-screen experience, and that some of
the time they want it to relate to what they‘re watching. But advertisers and publishers
are going to have to create fun and useful experiences that are good enough to
compete with the rest of the digital world and learn how to cross-promote between
platforms. Most importantly, they‘ll have to create these second spaces (and the
ad/sponsorship packages that include them) in such a way as to enhance the
advertiser‘s brand impact, not distract from it.

Having content that‘s a good compliment to the primary screen is the place to start, but
it‘s not the finish line. Experiences have to be easy to access, compelling and timely.
Brands that move to rapidly embrace this reality will have a clear advantage. They‘ll
have an edge in understanding how to introduce their messaging to multi-screen
consumers regardless of the evolution of their devices, behaviors and interests.

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Questions and a Look Ahead
How important to advertisers are the dynamic between reach and frequency? If
various levels of reach and frequency create dramatically differentiated results, will
advertisers measure this? Will they manage it?

When will advertisers orchestrate ad experiences across space and time? For
instance, showing ads simultaneously on multiple screens? Or spreading ad
exposures across multiple screens, strategically, as a consumer moves through their
day—navigating the physical space of home, work, leisure?

In the dynamic, innovative ad environment we work in, the answers to these questions
may be years away—or just weeks. One question, we hope, is now closer to a
definitive answer: that multi-screen advertising works, and it may be controlled to
achieve a business outcome.

Key Insight: TV and digital media are not natural rivals for advertiser
budgets, but natural partners.

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Summary
The viewers are increasingly playing their part in this second screen evolution. The
wave of technological change that has swept through the media landscape over the
past two years has not only developed tech-savvy users and given them the ability to
more easily participate in companion activities, it is increasingly instilling expectations
to be able to do so.

Unlike consumers, who view the role of companions as enhancing their viewing
experience, motivations on the ‗supply-side‘ are far more hard-nosed, and boil down to
commercial decisions such as commissioning, marketing and expanded advertising
opportunities. Furthermore, some value chain participants, such as advertisers, may
have the ability to produce interesting content experiences but lack a platform through
which to reach audiences; they therefore partner with broadcasters, platforms or
emergent third parties.

Multi-screen advertising has proven to be so effective that it is certain to persist for a
long time. The industry is at the beginning of that journey. As the use of data science,
and scalable ad targeting technologies develop, so too will the ―playbook‖ for multi-
screen advertisers.

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Appendix Usage Insights
Simultaneous

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The DVR is Impacting TV viewing & Satisfaction
• 71% of Telco video subscribers, 63% of DBS subscribers, and 42% of cable
subscribers, have a DVR
• 81% with DVR on more than one TV set rate the service 8-10 (10 being excellent),
compared to 73% with DVR on one TV set
• 70% of all digital cable subscribers have used VOD, compared to 58% in 2007, and
25% in 2004
• 59% of digital cable subscribers, and 64% of Telco video subscribers, used on-Demand
in the past month
• 68% of VOD users who also have a DVR strongly agree that their TV service is better
because they have both VOD and DVR
• 26% of Netflix subscribers use Watch Instantly daily, and 59% weekly
• 79% of Netflix Watch Instantly users use it to watch movies and TV shows on a TV set

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Food for thought: Are Tablets the DVR antidote?
The tablet may be the best thing to ever happen to the modern TV. A second screen can reduce the amount of time
viewers spend skipping ads, according to a just-released study that from Bravo with Latitude Research on
multiscreen viewers.
Nearly two-thirds of the study participants said that having access to a laptop, mobile phone or tablet while watching
TV made them less inclined to skip the ads. Specifically, Bravo said that if viewers had a phone, laptop and a TV on
hand they fast forwarded at the start of 40% of ad breaks. Dual-screeners with a smartphone and TV skipped ads
51% of the time.
Tri-screeners were observed to have over 13 attention shifts away from the TV – mostly to other screens – while the
actual show was airing, and dual-screeners had over 7 attention shifts away from TV. Multi-screeners were found to
be viewing mostly ad-friendly content on their companion screens, with participants spending the greatest share of
their time on websites and apps – often related to the program currently airing
Those findings suggest that tablet and smartphone screens may represent an untapped opportunity to ―capture‖ the
TV viewers when they‘re looking away, because they‘re often looking up info related to the show or the ad. Along
these lines, Nielsen found that among simultaneous TV and tablet viewers, about 37% of tablet users looked up
information related to the program they were watching, while 27% looked up information related to an ad.
Given that more than 15 percent of TV homes in the U.S. own a tablet, this mobile device may turn out to be a vital
link in reconnecting ad-skipping viewers back to brands. Bravo said that about half of multiscreen viewers were more
likely to remember brands if they‘d seen their ads on more than one screen. Ad Awareness lift for brands embedded
within the viewing session improved among viewers who had cross-screen ad exposure, helping to almost entirely
overcome any effectiveness shortfall resulting from DVR-enabled ad avoidance

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Understanding the Digital Day Maps how Media
Consumption Flows

• Users are connecting digitally throughout the day. Media consumption
follows a pattern regardless of device type.

• Time/day part provides window into consumer habits.

• High Frequency of use times are represented by personal time – at ‗wake-
up‘, ‗waiting‘, ‗bedtime‘, ‗TV time‘, ‗after work‘.

• While shopping and commuting show smaller frequency of use – this may
be due to the ‗addressable market‘
- Not always as a daily activity: unlike ‗waking up‘, ‗shopping‘ may only
happen once a week or a few times per week.
- Limited Audience: similarly ‗commuting‘ is not applicable to all as is
‗bedtime‘

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Simultaneous Usage Insights

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Web vs. mobile Apps vs. TV Consumption
minutes per day

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Genders Draw Bias Toward Content Types

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Simultaneous Usage Insights

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Wide Engagement on Tablets During TV-time

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Multi-screen Behaviors by Type of TV Program

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Multi-taskers(Duals) use mobile devices to drive entertainment and
efficiency

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High Spenders View Devices as Efficiency Tools First

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Purchase Ranks in Top 3 Action Items After Tablet Ad Interaction

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Mobile Devices act as central hub in our lives

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Multi-screen lessons to apply
1 The vast majority of media interactions
are screen-based, and so marketing
2 Consumers turn to their devices in
various contexts. Marketing and
strategies should no longer be viewed websites should reflect the needs of a
as ‘‘digital’’ or ‘‘traditional’’. Business consumer on a specific screen, and
should understand all the ways that conversion goals should be adjusted to
people consume media, particularly account for the inherent differences in
digital, and tailor strategies to each each device.
channel.
The prevalence of sequential usage
3 makes it imperative that business 4 Consumers rely on search to connect
their experiences across screens. Not
enable customers to save their only should brands give consumers the
progress between devices. Saved opportunity to find them with multi-
shopping carts, ‘‘signed-in’’ device search campaigns, strategies
experiences or the ability to email such as keyword parity across devices
progress to oneself helps keep can ensure consumers can find the
consumer engaged, regardless of brand when resuming their search.
device used to get to you.

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Multi-screen lessons to apply
5 During simultaneous usage, content
viewed on one device can trigger
6 Most of the time when TV is watched,
another screen is being used. These
specific behavior on the other. instances present the opportune time to
Businesses should therefore not limit convey your message and inspire
their conversion goals and calls to action. A business’s TV strategy
action to only the device where they should be closely aligned and
were intially displayed. integrated with the marketing strategies
for digital devices.
Consumers shop differently across
7 devices, so business should tailor the 8 Smartphones are Theybackbonedevices
daily media use.
the
are the
of our

experience to each channel. It’s also used most throughout the day and
important to optimize the shopping serve as the most common starting
experience across all devices. For point for activities across multiple
example, consumers need to find what screens. Going mobile has become a
they are looking for quickly and need a business imperative.
streamlined path to conversion, on
smartphones.

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Fresh Digital Group
111 John St 2nd FL
New York, NY 10038
www. freshdigitalgroup.com
info@freshdigitalgroup.com

Fresh Digital Group

ESPN InPlay Whitepaper/Case Study

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