NEW YORK—Time Warner Inc.’s Global Media Group today has selected Ball State University as the winner of its call for research proposals for its New York City Medialab.
The Time Warner Global Media Group will underwrite the cost of the study, which was chosen from 30 academic proposals. The second screen study takes advantage of the Medialab’s research methods to analyze how viewers interact with programs and advertisements through social TV, in addition to the effect that second screen has on linear viewing.
“In the year since the Medialab opened, we’ve completed more than 70 studies that have provided us with deep insight into the mind of the consumer,’ said Kristen O'Hara, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of Time Warner Global Media Group. “We wanted to partner with a university to tap into the intellectually curious minds of academia. The second screen study Ball State proposed will effectively use the Medialab to provide new insights on one of the biggest trends in content consumption.”
Ball State’s research team plans to use eye-tracking devices, focus groups and online surveys to examine engagement in the contemporary social TV viewing environment. Participants will watch television while using smartphones and tablets as researchers analyze how they interact with programs and ads through social engagement.
“The Time Warner Medialab gives us the opportunity to do a very natural study now that people are more accustomed to social media and have more sophisticated mobile devices,” said Michael Holmes, a Ball State faculty member researching media consumption. “The lab's state-of-the-art equipment allows us to build on prior second screen studies we've done at Ball State University, but with more in-depth analysis on qualitative research.”
Time Warner expects the findings to be revealed by June 2013.
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