Grey Interactive (GI) has launched Hong Kong's first Internet-on-TV
service for client iCare.com.hk.
At first glance, it seems strange that such a service - which can only
be accessed through a special set-top box - is needed at all. However,
GI general manager Karen Jim said there were a significant population,
especially among housewives, who were unfamiliar with computers and the
Internet.
In a recent study of non-Internet users, more than 70 per cent of 400
married women surveyed stated that the World Wide Web would in future
play a key role in their lives. Yet 79 per cent admitted they were
unfamiliar with computers, while 35 per cent said they preferred to go
online through the TV set.
"Housewives don't have much time left over after taking care of the kids
and doing all the housework, so this is a practical way for them to
become familiar with the Internet through the familiar setting of a
television set," Ms Jim said.
As such, the project required GI to develop a highly-specialised design
and implementation strategy that was family-oriented and customised to
meet the needs of this niche market.
One of the biggest challenges was to develop solutions to surmount the
inherent differences, both creatively and technically, between building,
viewing and navigating a website on television as opposed to a personal
computer.
The iCare.com.hk website, a provider of household information and
shopping services, is jointly owned by Towngas and Henderson Investment.
