Week 6: 03/09/2009
"BBC Unveils Revamped Red-Button Interactive TV Service for Children's Channel, CBeebies"
http://itvt.com/story/5532/bbc-unveils-revamped-red-button-interactive-tv-service-childrens-channel-cbeebies
This news article was very interesting as it details BBC's new interactive channel for kids six and under called 'CBeebies.' In the article, Damian Vicary, interactive TV producer for BBC Children's, describes the features and educational benefits of the new interactive platform, such as information about the characters from some of the most popular children's shows, educational games about nature and even a feature for the parents, allowing mum and dad to link in to BBC online and find the latest hot topics or games to play with their kids. This level of interactivity mirrors the Internet as far as what is provided for the children/parents to access, as the CBeebies website could potentially contain the exact same platform. The biggest difference is that is can ass be accessed whilst watching TV from the comfort of your own living room.
By targeting young children with this new interactive platform, channels such as BBC are leading the way into a new generation of interactive TV. It can be assumed that a generation of children brought up within the world of interactive TV will not be satisfied with 'normal' TV once they grow up, but rather the demand for interactive programs and accessible features will inevitably increase. This new CBeebies platform is being presented under the banner of education, as are most new programs and features concerning children. The channel appears to have been created with the aim of extending the knowledge and interest in education of young children, which parents will eagerly accept and use. However, while the information presented as harmless and may well extend the knowledge of young kids, the interactive nature of the platform also creates an expectation and a need to have access to whatever they want whenever they want. By having schedualed games and activities such as kareoke and bedtime stories, the children indulging in the platform will come to expect the information they desire to be readily available whenever they feel like accessing it, unlike the 'traditional' form of TV where the viewer must wait for the schedualed time of their program to begin, with no entertainment to take up the time spent waiting. Younger generations dependance on technology is becomming more and more of a need than a want, as they are being brought up with these interactive platforms and multiple outlets for accessing information when and where they want.
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