Oriol Lloret: "Telefónica bets on Living Apps to reinvent television"

   MADRID, 26 Mar. (Portaltic/EP) -

Movistar Plus is committed to Living Apps on its path to "reinventing television" and "adapting to short content" typical of social networks, which is something that new generations demand, as recognized by Oriol Lloret, director of Living Apps in Telephone. These applications, which are integrated into the Movistar Plus menu - without the need to download - seek to offer users "a unique home experience."

In an interview with Europa Press, the manager points out that young people demand a new way of consuming content, more similar to what they find on TikTok or Instagram Reels, and explains that the challenge is to "change the language" to bring it to life. the big screen. In this sense, Lloret compares it to "interactive zapping", adapted to these times, so that users can find small pills of content on the platform, interact with them and, finally, choose which one they want to see in full.

Here comes into play another aspect with which Movistar Plus seeks to stand out from the rest of the platforms, which is its role as an aggregator. Faced with a scenario of an enormous amount of content, which reaches the point of "overwhelming" the user, Telefónica seeks to put innovation at the service of improving access to content (both its own and that of third parties). "We must reinvent the user experience so that it flows much better and we believe that one of the keys to that is short content, which offers not only entertainment, but also a new way to discover the extensive catalog available," adds Lloret.

In this context, he explains that Living Apps allow "enhancing the digital capabilities of the traditional television platform" through "extended experiences." Thus, he compares this leap with the one experienced with the appearance of 'smartphones' and how the content was adapted until the appearance of apps as a "native expression of the mobile" so that the user could enjoy the content in a way appropriate. "We are in that moment of transition with the arrival of Living Apps on television," she adds.

The more than 2.3 million miMovistar customers with the UHD Decoder can now enjoy these changes - constantly updated -, in addition to accessing exclusive video game or sports content, learning about history, training at a professional level or playing in family thanks to these Living Apps. Live shopping experiences from various brands are also being integrated into the Movistar Plus platform, with the possibility of interacting with influencers from the TV remote (with the 'voice to text' function on the 'button'). Aura') and buy the products they promote without leaving the live show on the big screen.

Many of these Living Apps and new experiences are based on direct collaboration with 'partners', as is the case with LinkedIn Learning or The Royal Academy of History, whose Living App allows users to approach history from television through "two navigation axes, by year and by characters", explains Lloret, while stating that they are working so that the platform itself can suggest these, or other content hosted in the different Living Apps, with a more organic integration within the interface of Movistar Plus.

These collaborations could also become an "important source of income" for Movistar Plus, as the director of Living Apps explains in reference to said 'live shopping' from companies like IKEA: "It is a new way of approaching the products that "It can work very well on the big screen. We want to end the year with a minimum of ten brands in their own space within the platform, even being able to dedicate a linear channel." A "teleshop 3.0" - Lloret clarifies - that allows "changing the purchasing experience and the approach to products from the television itself." Other lifestyle brands with which Movistar Plus is already collaborating are Adolfo Domínguez, Amazon or Burger King.

Another important bet within this ecosystem is 'gaming'. The manager affirms that television is a "familiar and shared space", which opens up a huge range of possibilities when it comes to integrating small games ('casual games'), such as 'trivials' or memory exercises. , which can be enjoyed with the television remote control itself. Likewise, this platform can become the gateway to other, more powerful gaming experiences through subscription to cloud platforms and professional peripherals, offering a big screen experience for all types of users.

Within the 'Movistar Zone' section there is also the Movistar Cloud Living App, which is one of the most popular among users. From it, Movistar customers can see and play in full screen all the content they have stored from the Movistar Cloud mobile 'app'. This service is free and allows any Movistar customer to upload unlimited photos, videos and documents to the cloud. In any case, although file uploads are unlimited for Movistar Plus users, video playback on television is limited to 15 minutes.

Movistar Plus continues to be an example of a combination between linear and programmed television with on-demand content and, within this very particular ecosystem, Living Apps are presented as "a Trojan horse" to move towards "a digital platform of the century." XXI, with more fluid interactions and more agile updates," adds Lloret, convinced that this proposal is "very different" from the rest of the available platforms. "It allows us to have the flexibility of the digital world on television," he concludes.