Shazam ups the second-screen ante, gets massive TV show boost

Mobile app Shazam has successfully tuned its tagging powers into TV, announcing it is now compatible with every television channel in the U.S.

The new feature means that the app now has the ability to recognize all television shows, from the 160 channels covered, offering up cast and crew details and more – effectively making the app a viable second-screen experience.

Speaking about the app update, Andrew Fisher, Shazam CEO, said: "With more than a quarter of a billion people who have used Shazam worldwide, no other app has our scale when it comes to offering the opportunity to engage with the media that interests them the most, whether it's music or television.

"And now, that experience is even better than before, enabling people in the US to engage with any show at any time."

TV tagging

Shazam has been trialling TV tagging for some time, but it has mostly been adverts that have used the technology.

In the U.K., selected adverts within Britain's Got Talent were Shazam-enabled. But those in the U.K. will unfortunately have to wait for the new update.

According to Shazam it will be available in the "coming months" when it will arrive in Italy, Spain, Germany and France, as well.

Given that Shazam rival Zeebox is part-owned by Sky, it will be interesting to see some rivalry take place in the impending second-screen war.

Shazam has also announced that it now has more than 250 million users, with two million more users coming to the service each week.