NBC, WebTV bow enhanced NBA b'casts
Quiet intro for new interactive service
Although no formal announcement has been made and none is expected before the end of the season, viewers watching the playoffs on NBC will see a screen prompt inviting the viewer to click on his remote control for interactive elements as the game is being played.
Neither NBC or WebTV would comment officially, but sources confirmed that the companies are promoting the feature to subscribers of the WebTV Plus service. It's an extension of the enhanced TV component that NBC offers through WebTV for its broadcasts of Notre Dame football games.
Although there are more than 1 million WebTV subscribers in the U.S., Canada and Japan, it's not clear how many of those have the newer WebTV Plus service.
During the NBA playoff coverage, the enhanced TV feature reduces the image of the game and fills the rest of the screen with options: Viewers can click on various statistics about the players, chat with other viewers and enter NBA merchandising areas.
The companies beta tested the service developed by NBC's Enhanced Broadcast Group during regular season NBA broadcasts on the Peacock April 9 and 16.
NBC EBC group is working with WebTV and Wink Communications to develop interactive TV programming and is expected to announce more developments soon.
