Just when you thought the reality show landscape was flooded and that there wasn’t room in the marketplace for one more app, CBC Television has launched a new Facebook app to help create buzz and cross-platform interaction for its latest weekly series, Cover Me Canada.
The show, which debuted Sunday night, is a live music competition series that features eight wannabe musical acts shouting out their covers of tunes crafted by well-known Canadian composers. The Cover Me Canada app is designed to leverage social media activity across a variety of platforms, including newer offers like the iPad.
The app provides tracking and measuring services, in addition to a voting platform with which a combination of social activities determines “fan scores.” These scores award additional weekly earned votes and identify “superfans” who qualify for prizes. The main thrust of the technology is to provide a total multi-screen experience that empowers fans and gives them a stake in the content. By stimulating social engagement and fan involvement, the CBC is offering fans the opportunity to not just watch the show, but to influence the outcome of each week’s episode.
“When I first heard about Cover Me Canada, I knew it was an opportunity to do something different from the conventional voting for a reality show that we’ve done in the past,” said Tessa Sproule, executive in charge of digital programming, CBC Television. “Instead of the audience having to redial the phone in order for them to pay tribute to their favourite performer, we wanted them to actually contribute in a meaningful way. This includes talking about why they like a particular performer so much, sharing with their friends, and introducing viewers to new music.”
Sproule continued, “If a friend of somebody is a fan of a song they’ve never heard of, but they trust their friend’s musical sense, that’s exactly the type of participant we want to be able to reach.” In developing the app, the CBC was looking for more than a voting concept; in fact, they view the new app as a “fan participation concept.”
Designed for both web and mobile browsers, the app showcases Mentionmapp’s data visualization technology which highlights trends.
The Cover me Canada app was developed in conjunction with OverInteractive Media Inc., a Vancouver-based digital agency specializing in building strategies for social TV, and Temple Street Productions, a Toronto content producer.
