In South Africa it's most evident in ''event'' based television broadcasts, often combined with sport or reality shows such as Idols or SA's Got Talent, with new research that indicates that the explosive growth in social media use - coupled with watching television and called ''social television'' - is actually having a reverse effect on the use of the personal video recorder (PVR), compelling viewers to rather watch live television than making use of time-shift recordings.
According to a survey conducted in Britain by Digital Clarity and first reported by Studio Briefing, ''social TV'' in which especially younger viewers use cellphones to communicate with friends through SMS or social networks like Twitter and Facebook about the TV shows they're watching, is pushing people to rather watch TV shows live when they're broadcast instead of later.
According to the study, a massive 80% of people younger than 25 are in social interaction through social networks and their cellphones while they're watching television. Of this 80%, 72% use Twitter, Facebook or other mobile applications. Rather than social networks and television competing for attention, it seems that young people are happy to embrace both and use one to enhance their enjoyment of the other. The biggest impact is that viewers are less likely to record shows on for instance a PVR and watch it later when the social perception is that everyone is watching television together and sharing in the event.
''Social TV has changed this completely by turning programs into events where you have to watch them as they happen,'' says Reggie James, Digital Clarity founder.
