Social TV and Transient Memory

During the design fiction exploration through cartoons, i noticed some similarities between one of the scenarios i.e. the 'Share Chair' and Social TV. Social TV is an emerging technology which is based on the principal of being able to communicate with friends and family whilst watching TV to create a social experience. BT, Britain's largest telecommunications company, is currently investing in and researching this concept which i came across whilst reading their innovation news. Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has identified it as one of the top 10 technologies that 'will change life as we know it today'. Social TV links into my concept of transient memory as it involves communication centred around a short-term experience. There is the creation of a sense of presence and a shared experience.

Social TV is enabled via advances in technology and it aims to merge TV alongside existing communication systems. It aims to emulate a social experience within a more isolated context i.e. emulate the feeling of watching a game at the pub with friends at home.




There is some focus on making the experience better than if they were simply on Facebook chat whilst watching the same TV programme as someone else.

There is also the aspect of separation by distance: the idea is meant to bring people together who can't physically be together.

There are similarities between the 'Share Chair' and social TV in the communication aspect and the idea of being able to share memories as they occur. However, communication is between many people and there is a sense of 'community' rather than a secret connection between two individuals.

Social TV here on an MIT course website is described as a constantly evolving medium, whose natural progression is likely to take it to the social context.

Social TV is a related concept which is currently under development and it goes some way to hep situate the 'place' of transient memory within design.