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Text Reminders For New TV Shows

In beta trials around Britain, fans of the supernatural have been ditching the Ouija boards and Tarot cards and turning to SMS text-delivery TV reminder service whensiton.com, which is launching this month...

Are you lost without Lost? In beta trials around Britain, fans of the supernatural have been ditching the Ouija boards and Tarot cards and turning to SMS text-delivery TV reminder service whensiton.com, to provide them with an accurate glimpse of the future...

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Whenitson.com, which launches in October 2006, is the all-seeing-eye of TV. Whatever it is and whenever it’s on, they know about it. And now, so do TV fans everywhere.

Whensiton.com is the only TV guide that lets you find out when new series are starting, whether it’s the latest season of your favourite TV show or a completely new series.

Whensiton.com has been piloted in selected parts of the UK since June 2006, and it is ghostly goings on that has attracted most enquiries since the site launched. The Top 5 most-searched programmes on since are Supernatural, US smash-hit Ghost Whisperer, Most Haunted, Lost Season 3, and Bones.

Reminders by text drives the service

The service is available to everyone: all they have to do is fill in their mobile number and the name of the TV series you want to find out about on the website or by text and they’ll be sent a reminder by text two weeks before the series is due to start whether that’s this month, next month or next year.

Missing the opening episode of a new series is problem familiar to every TV viewer. Indeed it was this experience that provided the inspiration for WhensItOn.com’s creator Mark Coppel.

“I got sick of missing the opening episodes of new series and began to wonder how many other people there were like me. The answer appears to be thousands: the response we’ve had since launch has been phenomenal.”

Proving popular for the Long Tail of TV

Mark admits the popular appeal of ectoplasm was a surprise at first: “When the site launched, I thought it would be programmes like Extras and Spooks that topped the polls, but programmes like those are heavily promoted. With the exception of Lost Season 3, it has been the slightly more obscure series and channels that are pulling in the most enquiries.”

Every fortnight in the UK, 9,300 distinct programmes are broadcast (That’s over 150,000 broadcasts in total which shows just how many repeats there are!). Only 0.05% - or around 42 programmes each week are new series. It’s been like looking for a needle in a haystack until now.

The TV guide has been such a success, Whensiton.com, now has plans to extend its service to concerts, sporting events, films, DVDs, video games and even theatre.

The service sees itself well placed to serve consumers in the multichannel, fractured media world. The average UK viewer spends 22-32 hours per month watching TV. The lower figure is for summer viewing, while the higher figure is for winter viewing. In January 1996 there were 4.9 million homes with multi-channel capability in January 2006 this had risen to 16.8 million.

About Whenitson:
Whensiton.com is quick, easy and safe. Customers just fill in their mobile number and the name of the TV series they want to find out about. Customers will be sent a reminder by text two weeks before the series is due to start whether that’s this month, next month or next year. Whensiton is also available from your mobile. Simply Text TV and the name of the programme to 82540. Eg TV Top Gear to 82540. Individual New Series Alerts cost £1.50 each. If a new series is currently running then you can get a weekly text reminder for only 25 pence. Customers can cancel your reminder at anytime by simply texting STOP to 82540. Customers can make doubly sure they don’t miss out on their favourite shows – by simply entering their email address. Every time a reminder is sent to their mobile, they will receive an email update as well, free of charge. whensiton.com