A new live show on American MTV lets the viewers play VJ.
MTV America has followed the lead of MTV2 (UK) by introducing an interactive element to it’s programming. ‘Direct Effect’ a new live, interactive hip-hop show where the viewer is VJ, will premiere on September 11. Using new “Real Time” on-line voting technology, internet savvy hip-hop fans can log on to MTV.com while the show is on air and vote for the very next video they want played. Ultra-keen viewers will also be able to email the show with QuickTime Movies of themselves requesting their favourite video, which will then be broadcast on the channel.
In addition to the live interactive element, the show will also include more familiar features, including celebrity interviews, live perfomances, CD reviews and new technology reports.
MTV see ‘Direct Effect’ as the “ultimate marriage of music and technology”, with powerful PCs wired to the internet in the show’s ‘cyber-lounge’ set enabling the studio audience to surf the web. The studio audience will also show the viewers at home how to log onto MTV.com to select the next music video.
The technology is certainly up to standard, let’s just hope the same is true of the viewer’s taste.
