I don’t know how much live tv you watch but if you’re like me it’s not as much as you used to.  As a result we come across less tv adverts. If we watch on Netflix we don’t have any. If we are watching from a recording we forward past them.

For the most part that’s great. The less adverts I have to see the better. But the one thing I can’t fault advertising for is the discovery factor. By which I mean it allows me to come across a movie or tv show I might like to watch.

The problem is that I often can’t do anything about it. The show is weeks away and doesn’t even have an air date. As I don’t watch live tv much I’m not going to be keeping an eye out for it. It’ll pass me by.

Would it not be possible to allow viewers to hit record when viewing the ad? That way I don’t miss the show and the tv companies get more viewers. If the show doesn’t have an air date your device keeps your record command until the show appears on the schedule.

I’ve assumed the solution would be to allow viewers to press a button on their remote to record but there are other possibilities. They could use their tv provider’s app. They could use a Shazam-like service – it recognises the advert playing and provides some options.