Software : Netflix takes credit for Mad Men ratings bump

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Netflix takes credit for Mad Men ratings bump Posted: Making earlier seasons available on Netflix has earned Mad Men over a million new viewers, a top executive at the on-demand company has claimed. The season five opener pulled in 3.5 million viewers when it debuted on US cable network AMC earlier this year, compared with just 2.3 million pairs of eyes for the season four curtain raiser. Netflix's chief content officer Ted Sarandos reckons the ratings bump can be attributed to subscribers becoming hooked on the stylish, 60s-set advertising drama through the streaming service. "We brought maybe a million viewers to AMC," Sarandos told an audience at the National Cable & Telecommunications Association convention in Los Angeles. Lucky strike? It's an interesting claim, one which may attract more top-level cable shows to throw the older seasons on Netflix in the hope of pulling-in more first-run viewers However, beyond the boasts, Mad Men makes for an interesting case study. The show was regarded as a bit of a sleeper for the first couple of seasons, but enjoyed a huge publicity boost prior to the start of season five. Although Netflix will have undoubtedly played a role in the viewership increase, taking sole credit for the increased popularity of Don Draper and co. might be a pitch too far.

BBC iPlayer app set to launch on Windows Phone, says Nokia Posted: The BBC is set to launch a version of the iPlayer for Windows Phone devices 'within weeks,' according to a Nokia spokesperson. The Inquirer has word from the Finnish smartphone giant, and Microsoft's chief Windows Phone ally, that the hugely successful on-demand app will end its self-imposed exile on the platform. Speaking to the site at the UK launch of the Nokia Lumia 610 handset, a Nokia staff member said: "BBC iPlayer is expected to arrive on Windows Phone within the next few weeks, a sign that the Windows Phone Marketplace is attracting more developers." Interestingly the 'spokesman,' who probably wasn't authorised to be saying any of this, revealed that Sky Go will arrive on Windows Phone but was a "good few months away." The final piece of the puzzle The launch of the iPlayer would be a huge boost for UK-based Windows Phone fanciers, who may have been put off because they can't live without the Beeb's catch-up service. Indeed, the Windows Phone software itself is beautiful and functional while the Lumia 900 might be Nokia's finest hardware design ever. However, the only missing piece of the puzzle is those content-rich apps. The current absence of the iPlayer and SkyGo makes it a bold move for iPhone or Android users to ditch their OS and respective app stores for Windows Phone Marketplace. But that could be about to change.

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