Yap.TV, a startup behind a fast-growing iPad application designed to make TV viewing more social, is close to launching an ad product that will be able to sync up tablet ads with live TV ads.
The Los Altos, Calif.-based company rolled out its free social TV app last September. The app serves as both a programming guide and a vehicle for fans to comment on and virtually congregate around their favorite shows.
The product is integrated with both Facebook and Twitter so users can gauge what fans across the country are saying at any given moment during events like the Super Bowl or the latest episode of Glee.
Users can also set up "living rooms"—private viewing parties where they can chat with just their friends. They can also establish profiles on the site via which they can list their favorite shows and discover and sample other users' favorites.
While a slew of startups and established companies have introduced Web-based TV fan communities, “tablets are the right place for this,” contended co-founder Trevor Stout. “We’re betting the company on this. This is TV fused with social networks, and we’re reinventing the TV guide.”
Yap.TV is just getting started with advertising, but plans are in the works to integrate brand experiences within the app, said Stout.
But perhaps even more compelling is the company’s plan to introduce an ad technology that recognizes when an ad airs on TV and then prompts a user to take some sort of action, such as watching a demo of a new car model or signing up for an offer from an insurance company. "This is a way for brands to feature extra content," said Stout.
