For the October edition of the trend report, we've put together an overview of the biggest trends in social entertainment from the last year.

1. THEEXPERIENCE
THEBEHAVIOUR
THEFRANCHISE
THEPLATFORM
THESTRATEGY
TRENDS
SOCIAL
October 2011
ENTERTAINMENT

2. Once upon a time, playing a game was a social
experience in its simplest form. Then technology got in the
way so you didn‟t necessarily need your friends there too.
Fast forward a bit and „social gaming‟ is the buzz-phrase
of choice. But is social gaming actually very social? In
many cases no, the games just might live on a social
network. Things are about to come full circle again though
with a new generation of games.
The Sims Social is a soon to be launched Facebook
version of the 100m selling game that lets players bring
THEEXPERIENCE
their Facebook friends into the gameplay. So where other
„social games‟ may let players share updates and
content, Sims Social will leverage online relationships as
part of the gaming experience. Marrying the „social‟ with
gaming brings exciting opportunities; it also could bring a
potential minefield of social faux pas as you bring your
online friends into your virtual world.
Meanwhile Flickr is beta-testing a new multiplayer social
game, Glitch. Set in the minds of giants in a surreal world
and tied directly into Facebook, friends work together to
„solve the mystery of their environment‟. The trend for
social gaming is about to get a whole lot more sociable.

3. Using social media for social good is on the rise. Recently
in London we‟ve seen how hashtags on Twitter have been
used to organise clean ups across London following the
rioting. On Facebook, groups sprung up immediately to
show support for communities and the emergency
services. The organisation of large groups of people
through twitter is nothing new, however the impact was
more obvious than before. The resulting action by
members of the public went as far to make the front page
of the New York Post.
THEBEHAVIOUR
Twestival is one of the original uses of social media for
social good, connecting communities offline on a single
day to highlight a great cause and have a fun event. Since
2009, volunteers have raised $1.75 million for over 275
nonprofits.
Currently in Beta testing, Blue Dot is another example of
social media “doing good”. A citizen owned social
currency, Blue Dot is a way of thanking people for their
time, effort and money given to help others. In essence,
you do something good (a donation or spending time with
a charity) and you receive virtual blue dot which you can
redeem for movies, books, games, virtual goods and
money off vouchers to use for yourself.

4. When it comes to brand extensions, for every Pirates of
the Caribbean (which started life as a theme park ride),
there‟s a long list of failures. But a successful „extension‟
across formats or platforms can be a powerful thing.
So although the term „transmedia storytelling‟ has been
around since „03, it‟s now that we‟re starting to see the
real examples of this as the true evolution of the brand
extension.
From the sublime: Pottermore.com is a creative community
for Harry Potter fans, offering a direct relationship to the
THEFRANCHISE
storyteller & a chance to participate & extend the story.
Cleverly, it‟s also the only portal for purchasing Potter e-
books.
To the ridiculous: Having already announced a film, Angry
Birds is now embarking on the launch of a cook book &
collection of educational books. Taking the brand off on a
total tangent that speaks more of extending revenues than
narratives.
So what makes a successful extension? Narrative &
quality. There needs to be a good enough story to extend,
& a quality & relevance of product which aligns with the
starting point.

5. The bed time story has evolved and it‟s now all about the
iPad. It‟s also about some rather beautiful visuals and an
interactivity that causes excitement way beyond children.
Morris Lessmore is a great example. A digital reinvention
THEPLATFORM
of storytelling, the interactive book is the first by Moonbot
Studios. Whether tumbling through a storm, playing the
piano or flying through a magical world, the app lifts the
story from the pages and puts the reader in the middle of
it. Created by an ex-Pixar designer, it uses rich computer
generated animation, music, games and innovative
interactivity so well that it knocked Angry Birds off the top
of the app chart.
Offering interactivity of a different kind is the Infinite
Adventure Machine by David Benqué. Developed as a
Microsoft project, it‟s a computer program that generates
crude outlines for an infinite number of children‟s stories
where the reader fills in the blanks. It works by randomly
aggregating 31 basic narrative elements. The synopsis is
then spread over the virtual pages, each giving a basic
plot alongside an illustration, the reader then fills in the
details. A prototype at this stage, but an exciting start.

6. The traditional entertainment superpowers are facing a
challenge from the new (but very well known) kids in town
- Facebook and YouTube. The well established social
brands are making strategic moves to become fully
fledged entertainment providers, way beyond their
founding remit.
Having successfully launched in India, YouTube is now
bringing its online film rental service to Britain. With more
than 1,000 films available, the service offers a new and
convenient platform for movie viewing, teamed with
additional content including behind-the-scenes videos,
cast interviews and parodies.
THESTRATEGY
Meanwhile, Facebook has locked down a variety of
content partners to help it become the de facto global
entertainment hub. Through partnerships with
Spotify, Netflix and numerous other multimedia
companies, Zuckerberg‟s baby has evolved to give its 800
million users a platform to consume and share
music, films, games, news and everything inbetween.
While the last five years have been about signing people
up to the social network, it‟s now all about entertainment.

7. www.edelman.co.uk
www.thenakedpheasant.wordpress.com