ConnecTV, Pearl Launch Social Media App

With the help of the Pearl Nine consortium of major TV station groups, ConnecTV today rolled out its app that syncs TV programming with social media and provides “rich” content complementing the programming.

The app for the iPad is now available as a free download from the Apple App Store or for any PC browser at www.connectv.com. Apps for the iPhone and Android smartphone and tablets should be available in the next 45 days.

ConnecTV announced its partnership with the Pearl Nine last November and said the service would be launched in January. But January came and went with no service. During April’s NAB Show, ConnecTV told TVNewsCheck that it would launch June 12.

The Pearl Nine, originally formed to pursue the mobile DTV business, comprises nine groups: Belo, Cox Media Group, E.W. Scripps, Gannett Broadcasting, Hearst Television Inc., Media General, Meredith, Post-Newsweek Stations and Raycom Media.

Together, the groups represent more than 200 ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW and MNT affiliates in 45 of the top 50 markets reaching 76 million households.

Eighty five of those stations will be integrated into the ConnecTV experience for today’ launch with plans in place to grow to 215 stations.

As ConnecTV partners, the Pearl group will try to recruit other broadcasters, integrate local content, promote the service and sell complementary advertising that would appear on the app.

With the free app downloaded and installed, tablets, smartphones and computers in the same room as a TV will be able to identify what TV station and programming is on by listening to the audio. Within seconds, the app will provide related programming and advertising as well as an interface for interacting with other invited viewers through social media like Twitter and Facebook.

“Local engagement is at the heart of all social media, from Twitter to Facebook to Groupon,” said ConnecTV Co-Founder Ian Aaron. “ConnecTV is the only social TV network with a true investment in the local viewing experience and an unparalleled strategic partnership with the leading media companies in America.”

On behalf of the Pearl Nine, Alan Frank, CEO of Post-Newsweek Stations, said TV is driving much of the social media conversation, “but those conversations continue to be fragmented across myriad platforms and provide little local context.

“We see ConnecTV as a way for our communities to come together in a single, standardized digital extension of our broadcast platforms, and engage in dialogue around the information and entertainment most relevant to them.”