What happens when we have our TV on but we are not actively watching it? Google Backdrop has an interesting proposition on how to keep their user's eyeballs in the Google ecosystem, hindering the effort by majors and broadcasters towards re-conquering the living room experience. FOKUS Fraunhofer Media Web Symposium - Berlin 17.5.2017

1. BACKDROP & FRIENDS PASSIVE (yet smart) SCREENS
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

2. THE SURGE OF PASSIVE VISUAL HABITS ON TV
1991 1998 2003
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

3. 2014:
SET TOP BOXES
BECOME INVISIBLE
- Smart tv becomes a regular feature
- STB become invisible or almost invisible
- If you are not happy with your smart TV, you can
go for the OTT-enabled sticks (Chromecast, Fire
TV)
- OTT enabled sticks are based on pre-existing
social ecosystems, therefore perform with a much
higher minutes per day use rate
- Google Chromecast ends up being the most
successful
- Chromecast is the only OTT-TV proposition that
really enables flatscreen access to the whole of
the open internet content offering.
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

4. PROPRIETARY VS
ECOSYSTEM-ENABLED
- Google Chromecast fits all
- Fire TV fits only what it matters to Amazon
- Amazon does not care about what happens on
all screens.
- Google cares about all content, all screens
(adwords, adsense)
- Amazon is a competitor to Netflix
- Google Chromecast enables Netflix
- Apple TV is reportedly going to support
Amazon Prime Video
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

5. CHROMECAST IS NOT AFRAID OF ATTENTION-DRAINERS:
IT ENABLES THEM ON THE FLATSCREEN
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

6. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE DO NOTHING ON A CHROMECAST?
- when we are not using (or when
we stop using) a chromecast
enabled app a background
application called «Backdrop»
takes over, displaying on the full
screen an automatic slideshow of
pictures coming from a number of
curated web sources
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

7. CUSTOMIZED
SOURCES
Fokus MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

8. NON (DIRECT) PROFIT CULTURAL PARTNERSHIPS

12. A SECOND LIFE TO STREET ART
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

13. THOSE WERE THE DAYS...
- Before and during WWII people gathered in
the main squares of London, NY and Berlin,
where electric billboards made it possible to
read newswires in near real time
- During «less urgent» historical periods, passers-
by stumbled upon news updates even without
having actively looked for it
- These are the most ad-crowded sites of the
world. The investment in such heavy technology
(for the times) was justified by the large crowds
walking there every day.
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

14. SMART CURATION: NEWS
- Depending on your profile on Google
Newsstand, the Backdrop slideshow
can include pictures coming from
your favourite newssources
- By tapping on your smartphone when
the «newsphoto» is displayed, you
can go to the original news page on
your second screen
- You can even do it by saying
«chromecast, what’s this?» in the
device microphone
- SPOILER ALERT: don’t activate sports
results ☺
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

15. BACK(DROP) TO THE SECOND SCREEN
- the backdrop engine and
database can also be used to
generate net-enabled
wallpapers on android devices
(and it’s very popular with mac
users, too!)
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

16. BACK(DROP) TO THE SECOND SCREEN
- future developements might include the «dumb
slideshow» that automatically activates on tablets and
smartphones when not in use, but before the screen
automatically dims or turns off.
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

17. GUESS WHERE THIS MIGHT BE HEADED?
- soon we might end up having a
«passive, yet smart screen» that
follows us anywhere we go, that
tries to guess what we need
based on our behaviour on the
whole google experience,
driving and influencing our
next active initiatives on all
devices, as it already happens
with Google Now.
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

18. - We might think that the backdrop
app is another of those «side apps»
that have the only scope to keep the
user in the Google Ecosystem.
- Google has often puzzled analysts
(CSFB case) by developing costly
initiatives that generate no direct
revenue, but favour a future
perspective where its business can
grow better.
BUSINESS MODEL?
NOT NECESSARY
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin

19. Antonio Pavolini
Business Analyst, Media Industry
Twitter: @antoniopavolini (english)
Twitter: @antoniocontent
(italian)
Medium
Medium.com/@antoniopavolini
(mostly italian)
THANK YOU ☺
Fraunhofer FOKUS MWS, 17.5.2017 – Berlin