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Disruptomatic
Angela Natividad
Angela Natividad is a freelance copywriter, journalist and strategist based in Paris. She co-founded AdVerveBlog.com, a blog and podcast about ads and design, and writes MarketingProfs' “Get to the Point!: Social Media” newsletters. She likes people and animals, but not as much as books.
Tweet her @luckthelady.
James Martin
James Martin is the community manager of music & TV tradeshows midem & MIPTV/MIPCOM. He edits their respective industry news & trends blogs (blog.midem.com & mipblog.com) and also covers video games and technology for French cultural weekly A Nous Paris
Tweet him at @jamesmart_in
Stuart Dredge
Stuart Dredge is a freelance journalist based in the UK. He writes about digital music for Music Ally, and about apps and mobile for The Guardian, The Sunday Times and The Appside, as well as his own Apps Playground site.
Tweet him @stuartdredge

Sky Sports iPad app gets second-screen features

Here’s something to think about if you’re a Zeebox, a GetGlue or any of their (many) social-TV second-screen startup rivals. British satellite broadcaster Sky just gave its Sky Sports for iPad app a second-screen update.

What’s that? Well, until now, the app was mainly a way for Sky subscribers to watch Sky’s sport channels on their tablet – when away from home, for example, or unable to wrestle control of the living-room TV from non-sport-loving family members.

Now it’s also a second-screen aid to watching, say, live Premier League football on that bigger box. Users will get a Football Match Centre section with stats galore on players and teams, as well as a “curated Twitter feed with aggregated football fan commentary”.

Just the sort of thing the social TV startups are looking to do, in other words.

And while there’s still an argument for people using one app to get second-screen and social features for all the shows they watch, the fact that broadcasters like Sky are looking to own this second-screen relationship with viewers is undeniably a challenge to the likes of Zeebox.

Oh, which as you may remember, took investment from BSkyB earlier this year…

YouTube to stream the Olympic Games (in Asia and Africa)

Traditional broadcasters pay enormous sums for the rights to show the Olympic Games on TV, so news that YouTube is getting in on the action will make their execs shift uneasily in their box-seats this summer.

YouTube has struck a deal with the International Olympic Committee, which will be hosting an official channel on its service to show more than 2,200 hours of Olympic action – but to countries in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

The channel will offer 10 live feeds from the games at HD resolution, running from 9am to 11pm BST, with additional highlights organised by day, medal event or sport.

This has the makings of a test run: could YouTube make a move for wider rights for future Olympic Games?

The key will be whether the IOC believes it can gain more from revenue-sharing deals with YouTube than it will lose from its traditional broadcasting partners if they see this as cannibalising their own coverage.

iPad app NHL PrePlay is heartening on several levels for anyone who’s been following the growth in second-screen TV apps. First, because it goes beyond the check-in, getting people to predict the outcome of “every faceoff, power play, penalty shot, and more” while watching ice hockey matches on TV, earning points and trophies to compete against their friends. Second, because sporting body the NHL is fully on board, partnering with startup Pre Play Sports for the app, which also has sponsorship from beer brand Molson.

iPad app NHL PrePlay is heartening on several levels for anyone who’s been following the growth in second-screen TV apps.

First, because it goes beyond the check-in, getting people to predict the outcome of “every faceoff, power play, penalty shot, and more” while watching ice hockey matches on TV, earning points and trophies to compete against their friends.

Second, because sporting body the NHL is fully on board, partnering with startup Pre Play Sports for the app, which also has sponsorship from beer brand Molson.

The English Premier League is getting appy for football fans, although by licensing necessity it doesn’t have the ability to stream live games like, say, the MLB baseball body does in the US. Instead, Premier League 20 Seasons for iPhone and iPad is more a ‘Hey! Here’s 100 video clips of cool goals and moments from the last 20 years. Be amazed!’ offering. Five more clips will be added at the end of this season. Mildly interesting, but not for long. Most football fans will want the current week’s goals, right? ESPN has an app for that, mind. Broadcasting rights still count for something in the sports world…

The English Premier League is getting appy for football fans, although by licensing necessity it doesn’t have the ability to stream live games like, say, the MLB baseball body does in the US.

Instead, Premier League 20 Seasons for iPhone and iPad is more a ‘Hey! Here’s 100 video clips of cool goals and moments from the last 20 years. Be amazed!’ offering. Five more clips will be added at the end of this season.

Mildly interesting, but not for long. Most football fans will want the current week’s goals, right? ESPN has an app for that, mind. Broadcasting rights still count for something in the sports world…