MUMBAI: Online entertainment destination MySpace.com that lets artists and fans share and discover content has announced the launch of MySpace TV, a new service that makes the television experience social.
Available on the next generation of Panasonic Viera Connect-enabled HDTVs, MySpace TV puts viewers in control by allowing them to discover, share and comment on the programmes they‘re viewing.
Initial channels on MySpace TV will be music-focused, leveraging Myspace‘s music rights and leading library of 100,000 music videos and 42 million songs.
Myspace TV will expand beyond music, however, to encompass movies, news, sports and reality channels, with a growing lineup of today‘s popular broadcast and on-demand content.
Audiences will not only be able to view their favourite television programmes, but Myspace TV will also allow them to chat about what they‘re viewing while they‘re viewing it and invite friends to watch with them virtually.
The platform fully integrates social and television in new ways that add a dimension to content discovery and evolve the traditional television experience. A companion app will be available on tablets and smartphones, providing instant sync capabilities for a seamless experience.
"Myspace was the first successful social network because it allowed individuals to share their interests, listen to music, express their creativity and connect around the things they love," said Myspace CEO Tim Vanderhook. "Historically, TV has been a shared experience, as people gathered together to watch their favorite programs. Our belief was that we could enhance the TV experience by increasing viewers‘ ability to connect to both content and each other. By partnering with Panasonic, we‘re bringing together the content that people love and a social experience in one service: MySpace TV."
MySpace co-owner Justin Timberlake said, "We‘re ready to take television and entertainment to the next step by upgrading it to the social networking experience. Why text or email your friends to talk about your favorite programs after they‘ve aired when you could be sharing the experience with real-time interactivity from anywhere across the globe? As the plot of your favorite drama unfolds, the joke of your favorite SNL character plays, or even the last second shot of
your favorite team swishes the net, we‘re giving you the opportunity to connect your friends to your moments as they‘re actually occurring. This is the evolution of one of our greatest inventions, the television. And, we no longer have to crowd around the same one to experience it together."
Myspace TV intends to return the diminishing social element of television by connecting viewers around content, simplifying discovery by creating fan communities empowered to comment, rate, chat and invite friends to view programming together in real-time.
Launching in the first half of 2012, Myspace TV‘s over-the-top television service will be offered across the Panasonic Viera Connect platform.
Viera Connect is Panasonic‘s connected TV platform, which
offers access to Internet-based video-on-demand content and applications, ranging from news and fitness, to social networking and online gaming. Viera Connect requires no external box or PC(1) and is accessed via a single button on the television remote control.
Panasonic US chairman, CEO Joseph Taylor said, "Year after year, Panasonic‘s Viera Connect Smart Viera TV platform has continued to expand rapidly but with a singular focus to deliver to our consumers an extremely robust and interactive connected TV experience that can be customized and enjoyed on their large-screen HDTVs. We are proud to partner with the new MySpace on the debut of MySpace TV on our Viera Connect Smart TV platform. By partnering with a brand like MySpace on the Viera Connect Smart TV platform, we‘re taking connected TV to a whole new level of engaging, interactive experiences for consumers."
