Taking Social TV beyond chatting: How the TV viewer adds value to the Network

In this paper, we provide a comprehensive overview of the state-of-the-art in a contemporary iTV research area: social and networked TV. In our approach, instead of considering research sub-topics that build upon particular disciplinary threads (e.g., usability, user modeling, multimedia annotations), we take a multidisciplinary approach that builds upon findings in media studies, human-computer interaction and multimedia systems. Moreover, we downplay the importance of chatting over a distance in favor of non-verbal communication modalities. In this way, we focus on Social TV practices and highlight the role of each viewer as a node that adds value to the network. Finally, we provide directions for further research in neglected topics, such as supporting collocated viewing, and sharing the TV experience in a seamless way.