Time Warner checks in at GetGlue network

GetGlue, a young social network that lets users “check in” to television programmes, films and sporting events, has attracted the attention of investors in the media industry.

Time Warner is leading a $6m round of financing for the New York company, as the media conglomerate and its peers scramble to find new ways of promoting their content through social media.

Taking a cue from similar services services such as Foursquare, which let users share their location with friends, GetGlue allows users to signal what type of media they are consuming at any given moment. For example, viewers of television drama Dexter on Showtime might use GetGlue to say they are watching an episode, then share that check-in with their friends on Facebook and Twitter.

“It’s a very lightweight way to motivate desired behaviours,” said Fraser Kelton, chief operating officer. “We have the ability to spread timely, relevant and trusted messages.”

GetGlue has partnerships with 24 companies including television and film studios, book publishers and music labels. It is working with some media owners to offer users who check in to a specific media property rewards such as discounts on DVD box sets and otehr merchandise.

The company is seeking to capitalise on a sea change that is reshaping how consumers discover and share content. “There is a radical transformation under way in how consumers connect to media,” said Mr Kelton. “For the last 50 years TV has been fixed, it hasn’t been personalised.”

Now, echoing themes espoused by the likes of Mark Zuckerberg , Facebook chief, Mr Kelton says content will be shared across media platforms.

“We are expanding from a distention site and series of apps to a set of widgets and API calls that developers can use to integrate this social functionality into their offerings,” he said, adding that GetGlue is working with television executives to incorporate social networking features into new models.

Time Warner, whose HBO, TBS and Warner Bros divisions are among GetGlue’s existing partners, has invested through its venture capital arm, Time Warner Investments Group. Existing investors RRE Ventures and Union Square Ventures also joined in the latest round.

The division’s past investments include AdMeld, which helps publishers improve their online advertising revenues; Six Degrees Games, an online sports entertainment group; and Simulmedia, which helps television networks improve programme ratings using set top box data to guide their promotional spending.

It typically takes non-controlling stakes in private companies for up to $25m, but looks to be “an active and prominent investor”, often taking the lead investor role in the hope of getting early insight into technologies that may prove important to its core businesses. Its website lists 17 active investments and another 11 in which it has sold its stake.

Rachel Lam, the managing director of Time Warner Investments Group, said in August that it sought to back companies “that can become important strategic partners for our operating divisions”.