HBO is taking a stab at a social media platform, calling the new project HBO Connect. The venture will allow fans of widely popular HBO series like True Blood, Entourage, and Curb Your Enthusiasm to become more interactive with other fans, actors, and those behind the scenes.
HBO Connect was introduced as a “second screen experience”, meaning fans will be able to interact with their peers in real time on their smartphone or computer, while watching their favorite show. The cable giant released a soft-launch of HBO Connect this Tuesday, and is expected to add more features in June when summer television series kick off.
HBO Connect is made up of the following 5 key features:
*Pulse – displayed on the homepage of HBO Connect and shows in real time what series is being clicked on a shared at that moment.
*Feeds – feature that displays Facebook and Twitter streams, trends, user lists, and allows users to customize and filter their individual page
*Conversations – feeds of conversations that fans will be able to have with actors, and people behind the scenes, from their favorite HBO shows. Scheduled question and answer sessions thus far include Janina Gavankar from True Blood, Wendell Pierce from Treme, and Thomas Jane from Hung, among others.
*Visualizers – essentially pop-ups of trending topics, keywords and hashtags that can be repositioned as each users sees fit.
*Connections – listings of where else to find each show on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, along with visuals of your friends on Facebook who “Like” a particular show.
The premium cable network’s goal is to spark viewers interests and keep them tuned in even after a series has wrapped. From what we have seen thus far, HBO Connect seems like a pretty simple, non-intrusive, free way to do so.
Tags: hbo, social media, tv
