Nine braves the cross-platform leap of faith

In a previous post, I mentioned the telemovie ‘Scorched’ which was shown on Channel 9 in September. The program was one of the first in Australia to combine a TV broadcast with webisodes and linked websites, creating cross-platform content. It was considered to be groundbreaking and experimental television.

The concept of ‘Scorched’ was also discussed on The Media Report, 28 Aug 2008 when host Antony Funnell interviewed ‘Scorched’ creator Marcus Gillezeau. One of the main topics was how the creators managed to convince commercial network Nine to get involved in this hybrid television and online program.

As new media opportunities develop, it seems like common sense that a large network would combine all the platforms it controls (TV, web, print, radio) to push a particular program. However, as Gillezeau explains, the traditional mindset has been ‘if you make something for the internet, then you’re taking eyeballs away from the television’. So ‘Scorched’, in Australia, was a brave move by Nine.

But it makes sense, commercially at least. ‘Scorched’ consisted of the telemovie on Nine, a number of websites and a series of webisodes, which ‘tie in to the telemovie but also function as a story of their own’. Essentially, a cross-platform approach like this allows the program to build an audience by accessing people who may not normally have watched it. By having an online tie in, suddenly the target audience is extended and also has the opportunity to be involved.

Gillezeau points out that using the internet allows you to specifically identify your audience, a feature which is quite valuable to advertisers. Being able to demonstrate exactly who the program will be reaching means advertisers will pay more to be involved in such specific marketing, causing the price for content to rise as well.

A cross-platform approach, such as ‘Scorched’, will surely become more and more common as new technology changes traditional media forms. Advertisers and producers are looking for new and innovative ways to reach an audience that was previously considered inaccessible because they sat behind a computer. Linking programs, online and otherwise, will draw media together until it forms one large, dynamic entity with numerous options for producers, advertisers and most importantly, audiences.

Check out the ‘Scorched’ webisodes at http://www.scorched.tv/

Transcript: Scorched