The long wait is finally over. Zeebox has officially launched in the US. One of the most highly anticipated social TV announcements of the year is finally here and it's as glamorous and colorful as we predicted. Less than a year since the platform has launched in the UK, Zeebox is now in the US for iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Android and the Web. They're launch partners include Comcast, NBCU, HBO and Cinemax. Here are the details of one of the biggest social TV launches in history.

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Back in February 2011, the highly anticipated (and soon to be disappointing) Oscar co-host James Franco joined Twitter in time for the big broadcast. After the show, Tom Hanks went on Jimmy Kimmel and talked about tweeting. Both stars didn't mention this, but they were using then in stealth-mode WhoSay, the social media management app that has given a celebrities a place to thrive in exclusivity...

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Comcast has taken the wraps off a new cloud-based platform that turns the TV set into an interactive experience with third-party apps and the iPhone or iPad into a multi-gesture remote control. "I think of it as taking all our learnings from the web and all our learnings from video and tying them together," explained Comcast Cable President and CEO Neil Smit, who demonstrated the new products at the Cable Show.

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These days, millions of people call their friends and family on their computers, but Skype is steadily making inroads on TV sets, too. Comcast announced today that its Skype for TV service just launched in Seattle and Boston, with eight more markets launching by the end of the week. The $9.95/month Xfinity add-on includes an HD camera, Skype adaptor and full-keyboard remote control. Once you're wired up, you can access your Skype contacts -- even import from Facebook...

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The cable MSOs have long been accused of lagging in product innovation while boosting prices. Meanwhile, web-based services like Netflix and Hulu have grown market share, helping create a new demographic of "cord nevers." But over the last few months, Comcast is fighting back, unleashing a barrage of new products: second-screen Xfinity apps, a cloud-based set-top experience, social TV integration and now its own streaming service, Streampix.

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A patent application obtained by the site FierceCable reveals that Comcast is planning to add a number of social TV features in its program guides that are staples of many second-screen apps. For example, viewers could receive notifications when their friends are watching a particular show, see trending shows in their city, as well as win rewards (like badges, coupons or a discount on their cable bill) for recommending shows to their friends or watching a particular show a certain number of times.

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You've probably seen all the promos for the upcoming NBC show, Smash, premiering on the network on February 6th. But NBC is practicing some synergy with its new majority owner, Comcast, by debuting the show early on Xfinity.

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It's always interesting to learn how the MSOs are treating and using social. When we spoke with Synacor, a company that helps MSOs use a secure, single sign-on to authenticate their subscribers for second screen apps, we learned about the challenges that are faced in sharing links across the social web that are walled-in by a provider login. We spoke with Cox Communications, the fifth largest MSO and learned about Cox TV Online and improvements to the set top box. Also, recently heard Rachelle Zoffer, Director, Content Strategy & Acquisition, Interactive TV at Verizon Fios (my own MSO and the 7th largest one) speak at a Producer's Guild of America New Media Council event where she discussed their investment in interactive widgets, such as on screen games for kids during Nick's Spongebob.

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It's always interesting to learn how the MSOs are treating and using social. When we spoke with Synacor, a company that helps MSOs use a secure, single sign-on to authenticate their subscribers for second screen apps, we learned about the challenges that are faced in sharing links across the social web that are walled-in by a provider login. We spoke with Cox Communications, the fifth largest MSO and learned about Cox TV Online and improvements to the set top box. Also, recently heard Rachelle Zoffer, Director, Content Strategy & Acquisition, Interactive TV at Verizon Fios (my own MSO and the 7th largest one) speak at a Producer's Guild of America New Media Council event where she discussed their investment in interactive widgets, such as on screen games for kids during Nick's Spongebob.

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It's always interesting to learn how the MSOs are treating and using social. When we spoke with Synacor, a company that helps MSOs use a secure, single sign-on to authenticate their subscribers for second screen apps, we learned about the challenges that are faced in sharing links across the social web that are walled-in by a provider login. We spoke with Cox Communications, the fifth largest MSO and learned about Cox TV Online and improvements to the set top box. Also, recently heard Rachelle Zoffer, Director, Content Strategy & Acquisition, Interactive TV at Verizon Fios (my own MSO and the 7th largest one) speak at a Producer's Guild of America New Media Council event where she discussed their investment in interactive widgets, such as on screen games for kids during Nick's Spongebob.

Read more