You’ve heard of the big screen, many watch the small screen, but what is all of this discussion around the second screen? The second screen refers to act of using a laptop, tablet, or smartphone while watching television. We all do it, whether it’s that last email for work, or posting a status message to Facebook. It’s the easiest form of multi-tasking and devices like smartphones and tablets make it even easier to do while watching your favorite program.
In many cases, the second screen experience is a social one: Using Twitter or Facebook to live comment or discuss TV happenings using social media tools. More practically, the second screen in our hands extends the passive experience of TV watching into an interactive one once a viewer is exposed to tv content that interests them and sends them online to learn more.