This thesis describes the phenomena of interactive television, focusing on the development of this technology in the United Kingdom which is considered the country with the largest development of this technology. The thesis starts by defining interactive television as such, dividing it into three main categories. Aside of that a short overview of the evolution of television broadcasting in the United Kingdom is presented, and the term Convergence is explained as it is a crucial one for many of the interactive applications. The second part consists of a case study of evolution of interactive television in the United Kingdom. As it tries to answer the main research question - which technological phases must have happened in the transition from linear to interactive television - the thesis divides interactive television into five main phases. The first phase occurs in the analogue broadcasting era, with Teletext as the first instance of "on demand", and first instance of convergence by using telephone. The second phase starts around 1998 with the start of digitalisation. The new technology allows the providers to launch several new forms of interactivity, such as the walled garden, first applications and others. The third phase, starting around 2002 can be seen as the acceptance of interactivity as a...

This is an exploratory study conducted to assess the way in which social media could enhance the experience for audiences of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) television drama. This study focused on Facebook and Twitter since they are two of the top five social media networks that are popular in the country and which have the potential to offer television more mileage in terms of communicating with its audience and extending its reach. The guiding theory for this study was uses and gratifications theory. This theory was employed to assist in assessing the opportunities that exist for SABC television drama, as well as to assess the ways in which the audience believe social media could be helpful in interacting with SABC television drama. The results for this study are interesting in that the majority of respondents believed that having a hashtag on screen during a drama broadcast would help to increase interactivity with the programme, as it could help direct audiences to the correct interactive space for that programme and they would be able to share their ideas and comments on the drama directly with the producers, making feedback immediate. It was interesting to note that the respondents believed that they could interact with SABC television drama for information relating to the story. The findings suggest that SABC television drama needs to actively adopt social media in its programmes for maximum interaction. There is also the need for an understanding of how they Facebook and Twitter could be embedded in SABC drama. / Communication Science / M.A. (Communication Science)