MEDIA CONTEXT 277this does not seem to be true. Intense and positive responses towards the context carry over
more easily to ads in an interrupting break than in a shoulder break. An explanation for the
latter is that during the programme viewers experience more arousal and interest than
between programmes.^58
As for the sequence within a block, the earlier an ad appears in the block, the higher the
motivation to pay attention to the ad and process the information. Furthermore, the placement
of an ad also determines the opportunity to pay attention to it. The primacy effect, suggesting
that ads that come early in a magazine or early in a sequence of TV commercials are more
effective, has been confirmed on several occasions.^59 However, for TV advertising the last
position can also be beneficial since the consumer has more time to process the ad due to the
fact that it is not followed by another ad, but by a short silence.^60 Because of inherent character-
istics of the medium, certain places can raise the opportunity to pay attention; for example,
the upper-left corner of a magazine (people normally start reading from the left to the right),
the right-hand page (this is the flat page when a magazine is open) or the cover page.^61It is common for people to be exposed simultaneously to both audio-visual stimuli and interactive information
in many media-rich websites that contain a video sequence and clickable commercial information. Furthermore,
people are increasingly watching movies, programmes, and other content via web links. Interactive digital TV, the
merging of TV and Internet technology, has led to an integration of interactivity within the audio-visual content.
These evolutions have led to many new entertainment and advertising formats. One of these new advertising
formats is the telescopic ad. By means of a click on the call-to-action button in a traditional ad, content appears
on screen that provides additional information.^62 This interactivity embedded in the persuasive information has the
capacity to evoke a cognitively involving experience.^63 To avoid viewers missing part of their programming, this new
advertising format allows people to follow the broadcasting content using the picture-in-picture technology.
When people are simultaneously exposed to interactive persuasive information and a programme context, they
will divide their attention between both tasks. This can lead to an interference effect. Interference can be defined
as the process by which our ability to recollect information is hindered by our exposure to some other information.^64
Advertising researchers distinguish between different types of interference. Perceptual interference is related to the
simultaneous processing of information of different modalities (e.g. reading, listening) and/or different representa-
tion formats (verbal or non-verbal). Semantic interference takes place when an ad is placed within a programme of
similar content; elements of the programme and ad merge together in a phenomenon known as meltdown, resulting
in impaired recall. Besides the negative interference effects of simultaneous exposure to ad and context, positive
reinforcement effects have also been observed. For example, prior research has shown that integrated multisensory
cues can enhance learning and experience.^65 Congruent context information may also cognitively prime the embedded
ad, leading to more attention and information processing.^66
In two experiments, the effect of simultaneous exposure to a TV programme and an interactive ad on self-
reported attention and clicking behaviour was studied. Experiment 1 examined perceptual interference/reinforcement,
and Experiment 2 investigated semantic interference/reinforcement. In the first experiment (208 participants) a
sequence (six minutes) from the movie Taxi was shown. After participants responded to the call to action, in the
audio-visual programme context condition, the programme appeared in the upper-right-hand corner of the screen,
by means of the picture-in-picture technology. In the auditory programme context condition, the programme was
not visible, and the interactive information was available on the whole screen. The users could only hear the
programme in the background. The advertising stimuli were combinations of a traditional 30-second ad, with an
integrated call to action (‘Click here for more information’), followed by an interactive part with clickable additional
information related to the advertising message. The message was about the selective use of antibiotics given theresearCh insight
Context effects in split-screen TV formatsM08_PELS3221_05_SE_C08.indd 277 6/6/13 9:23 AM