BBC iPlayer 'Living World'

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I was set the task of redesigning the BBC’s online TV catch-up service : the iPlayer.

The aim was to push the boundaries of what is possible with the iPlayer. The redesignerd iplayer is more interactive, more intelligent and more engaging. With features such as a ‘living world’ background screen personalised to you (based upon your TV viewing), interaction with smart TVs and the addtion of social media - the new iPlayer was set to blow the competition away.

Developed up to story board and visual mock ups, using
Photoshop, GSG Light Kit Pro & Cinema 4D.

To improve on something already great I needed to boil it down to the bare bones:

Developing the look and feel :

And development of iPlayer cube, a world of TV that customises itself to you.

The TV ‘cube’, this is the interface of the iPlayer and organises TV shows by type such as most popular
and missed shows. This is to be more of a ‘real world object’, which you have to interact with, rather than simply clicking on a menu. This is further enhanced with the iphone and ipad apps, which will introduce gestural controls - allowing the viewer to have full control of the iPlayer cube with their fingertips - and doubling up as a remote for your synced Smart TV :

Adding social features into the iPlayer, which completes the iPlayer immersive world. The iPlayer social
features allow the viewer to connect with friends, link with twitter accounts (hash tags) and comment on live shows. Friends can watch shows together online through iPlayer as if they were on the same sofa in their house and comment to each other. Friends can also see each other’s iPlayer world :

The result is an iPlayer that incorporates social media, and that actually learns from your TV viewing via a new SYNC function which integrates the iPlayer with internet enabled ‘Smart’ TV’s.

The sync function is the most powerful new feature of the iPlayer and allows revolutionary levels of intelligence and interaction. The sync button can be found on the home screen of the iPlayer and allow the iPlayer to monitor your TV viewing - allowing it to learn what you love and know when you have missed your favourite show :

Powered by the sync function, is a constantly evolving iPlayer world which the user is presented with. This background is a living thing which updates and changes with the programs watched.

Watching nature programs will spawn birds flying around, or schools of fish drifting in and out, comedy programs will brighten the colours of the living world, science will introduce planets, art and culture programs will have a more abstract effect and lifestyle will introduce new scenery and sky.

It is like a tamogotchi that is personally linked with the user’s TV preferences. It is essentially a purely visual feature but is unique to each viewer and represents them, with the intention to allow the viewer to fully connect with iplayer and feel that it is an extension of themselves :