Fans will be able to show their appreciation from their sofas through 'Tap to Clap' feature
When The X Factor returns to ITV this autumn, it will come with a spin-off iPhone app enabling viewers to share their views on the show through a "Tap to Clap" feature.
The app will be released through a partnership with Rimmel London, and its applauding feature will involve tapping the touchscreen to register appreciation of a contestant, judges' comments, guest stars and results, including posting it on Facebook and Twitter. The app will also provide news and video clips from the show.
It's just the latest example of second-screen interaction around prime-time TV shows in the UK. Earlier this year, Britain's Got Talent got its own spin-off apps including similar features: users could virtually "buzz off" contestants alongside the judges on the show.
The X Factor app will sit within the wider digital activity around the show, which this year will also include a search for "Superfans", who will be invited to interview contestants, judges, hosts and other fans, writing blog posts and posting videos as a result. The digital campaign also includes a revamped website, red-button competitions and the official X Factor Twitter and Facebook presences.
"This year's digital offering for The X Factor is all about giving fans new and exciting opportunities to interact with the show in real time - including our first dedicated iPhone app and the launch of the 'Superfans' feature," says ITV's controller of multiplatform commissioning Richard Williams. "We've focused on commissioning and developing content that reflects the appetite we know is out there, for fans to join in with the live TV experience."
It remains to be seen if the X Factor app will only be available on iPhone, leaving Android, BlackBerry and other smartphone users out in the cold – a strange decision for a show with such a mainstream audience, despite the additional costs of supporting these platforms.
In 2010, the show's official partner was Nokia, which secured an exclusive deal for an X Factor app on its Ovi Store for Symbian smartphones.
Exclusive deals for official apps are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to social interaction around shows like The X Factor, however. Many viewers will be using Twitter and Facebook apps to talk about what they're watching on this year's show instead.
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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/appsblog/2011/aug/11/x-factor-iphone-app
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