subject: Interactive Television [print this page] The traditional television with its simple channel up - channel down formula is no longer satisfying the fast growing needs of the modern life. More and more people prefer to use Internet instead of television. The reason is in one way directed communication and impossibility of receiving the information which the user needs instead of the information he is forced to receive. Obviously, the new method of video-on-demand is required for today and future needs.
Interactive television makes the feedback system possible which means that the information and data are sent both from the broadcaster to the viewer and from the viewer to the broadcaster. In this way all of the received information can be individualized according to the preferences and needs of the viewer. The perspectives and advantages of interactive TV can hardly be exaggerated. The information can be chosen by each person himself, no more forced content is yet delivered. Interactivity and personalized content become the new type of service with great prospects and successful future but it also needs new technologies and methods of implementation. The technical part of the process comes to special devices, interactive applications and software. Those are, for instance, the set-top box or Integrated Receiver Decoder. Simple technologies of the return connection can be carried out with the regular telephone lines, Internet connection, radio, mobile SMS and others.
In this way many TV viewers can interact with the program they are watching by voting and expressing their opinions about different news, happenings, famous people and so on. However, television can be called truly and wholly interactive if there is a possibility to change the program itself in accordance with the viewers requests, for example, changing camera angles while watching the sport program, pausing the show or skipping the annoying commercials.
One of the greatest advantages of interactive TV is the ability to carry video conferences and video chats. They are extremely popular nowadays and cover the audience from businessmen to housewives. The reason of interactive TV being still the priority of several countries is its novelty. A regular TV viewer is not familiar with its useful features and doesnt want to buy a decoder. The broadcast companies also would not sponsor the costs. The only way out is popularization the service.
The whole system of interactive television is held by large number of providers and operators whose cooperation makes this service possible. These are box makers (who make boxes for viewing interactive TV), multiple service operators (who offer access to content), network operators, operating system providers, application providers, program content producers and so on.
Though interactive television is related to higher expenses for both sides, it offers the range of new services and possibilities which shouldnt and mustnt be ignored today. Interactive TV solves the main problem the usual television deals with: showed programs match average likings of average people. Regular television is totally non-personal that makes more and more people turn it off and turn on their computers. The implementation of interactive TV can bring popularity to TV sets back.
