David Farnor | On 23, Apr 2014

Sky has started to trial #WatchOnSky, a brand new tool that lets viewers watch TV shows by clicking on tweets.

We have written at length on the relationship between Twitter and TV, which are becoming increasingly intertwined thanks to viewers’ social behaviour and the company’s own commercial objectives. Now, Sky is taking the relationship one step further with their tool that lets Sky customers watch or record TV shows, sporting events and movies by simply clicking icons contained within a Tweet.

witter users who see #WatchOnSky on Tweets from Sky can expand the Tweet and tap on an icon that directly links to Sky’s mobile TV service Sky Go to start watching the show. Alternatively they can tap the Sky+ ‘R’ to remotely set their Sky+HD box to record. The launch of #WatchOnSky marks the first time that a British broadcaster has created a service which lets users access live TV and set recordings via their Twitter timeline.

The new in-house service builds on the popular Sky Go and Sky+ apps that let customers flick through channels and record upcoming shows, as well as browse through thousands of hours of on demand TV and movies to download to their Sky+HD box.

Luke Bradley-Jones, Brand Director, TV Products, Sky comments: “#WatchOnSky is another brilliantly simple way for our customers to find and watch the shows everyone is talking about. By simply clicking on a Tweet, customers can either instantly watch live TV or record shows for later. It’s all part of our commitment to make it even easier for our customers to discover great TV and make sure they never miss those virtual water cooler moments.”

Dan Biddle, Head of Broadcast, Twitter UK adds: “Twitter users love to talk about TV shows, joining conversations about their favourite programmes with other fans across the UK. #WatchOnSky is a really exciting development that will make it even easier than ever for Twitter users to spot social buzz about a show, and tune in or record it for later. We’re delighted to see Sky innovating with this service and look forward to seeing Twitter users enjoy this functionality.”

#WatchOnSky will appear across Sky’s Twitter feeds including @SkyHD and @SkyAtlantic for key shows, sporting events and movies on Sky.

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