Nissan Revs up for GT Academy Season 2 with second screen experience
Nissan is partnering with Sony Playstation’s Gran Turismo franchise on a second-screen experience that lets consumers interact with content in real-time through tablets and smartphones.
The Pit Pass second-screen experience launches Nov. 1 and is part of the brand’s launch of the second season of the Nissan GT Academy TV series. Nissan is working with Critical Mass, OMD and TBWA/Chiat/Day on this initiative.
“According to Forrester Research, 88 percent of tablet owners use their tablets in the living room, and 85 percent of tablet owners use tablets while watching TV,” said Steve Savic, Calgary-based group creative director at Critical Mass.
“To seize on this phenomenon and drive deeper engagement with the GT Academy show and Gran Turismo game, Nissan wanted to offer gamers and fans an enhanced-viewing experience by creating branded companion content to complement the TV episodes,” he said.
“Rather than simply watching the show, the goal of the mobile experience was to amp up interactivity and make it more personal and social by putting the user right in the middle of the action.”
Mobile viewing
Nissan is rolling out the second-screen experience to kick off the second season of Nissan GT Academy — a TV series that airs on Spike TV.
The series follows 16 Gran Turismo gamers as they compete for a chance at becoming a professional racing driver. At the end of the series, one winner will be chosen to participate in a professional racing program to qualify for an international competition license.
Beginning on Nov. 1, users can use their tablets and smartphones as second screens by accessing http://gtacademy.us/.
Via the site, consumers can unlock additional content while watching the show on TV. Examples of additional content include videos, maps, tutorials and polls.
Additionally, the app syncs with a user’s Facebook account to create custom videos and put users into the show by using panoramic features.
Besides the TV and mobile components, consumers will be able to watch the episodes on YouTube and MTV2 after they air on Spike TV.
The Nissan second-screen experience
Second-screen value
Marketers are increasingly looking for ways to connect the dots between TV and mobile with consumers often using both mediums in conjunction.
However, many second-screen experiences do not give users an upfront value for using their devices while watching TV and seem like a tacked-on addition.
In this case, Nissan is using mobile to tap into a niche group of tech-savvy consumers.
Additionally, Nissan is taking a different approach than many marketers looking to combine mobile and television with an interactive mobile site versus an application, which might result in more participating consumers.
“Most mobile automotive experiences are created as apps, but Critical Mass wanted to avoid this barrier to entry,” Mr. Savic said.
“By creating a mobile site experience that is browser-based, users can access the content from any device—be it tablet, mobile phone or even desktop,” he said. “We wanted to make it as easy as possible for fans to participate in the action.”
Read the article on Mobile Marketer.