Interactive television, a form of @Interactive Media, enables its viewers to affect the storyline by soliciting choice which impacts the nature of the narrative. The format—often referred to as a @Choose Your Own Adventure—is @Nonlinear Storytelling ; {1} Interactive television represents a continuum from low (TV on/off, volume, changing channels) to moderate interactivity (simple movies on demand without player controls) and high interactivity in which, for example, an audience member affects the program being watched. The most obvious example of this would be any kind of real-time voting on the screen, in which audience votes create decisions that are reflected in how the show continues. A return path to the program provider is not necessary to have an interactive program experience. Once a movie is downloaded, for example, controls may all be local. {2} Basically, program providers letting people choose the content of their shows by providing a platform and asking the audience for what they wish to view or do next then implementing their requests The earliest form of interactive television was a children's program called 'Winky Dink and You' that aired from 1953 to 1957. The show's young viewers placed a transparent sheet over the screen and, using crayons, help the show's characters draw pathways, tools, etc.. The series was eventually discontinued because children began drawing directly on the television screen. See: @Netflix's Interactive Television
Netflix
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News
- Netflix launched its interactive storytelling unit in 2017 with several kids titles.
- Walmart has also invested $250M in a venture with interactive storytelling platform Eko.