Community Television, DIY, and Web 2.0

Ping Pong TV brings public art into the private sphere, while inviting viewers to make their own 3D glasses and hack common household items to construct one-of-a-kind game controllers.

Unfortunately, it seems that most of the existing modes of TV interactivity listed before (e.g. video on-demand, “T-commerce,” interactive TV game shows, DVRs, etc.) are only enabled at a cost to the viewer. Ping Pong TV is a non-commercial television program that will be broadcasted on local public access television stations. The motivation behind this interactive TV show is intended to invite the common TV viewer to partake in a public art installation from the comfort of his or her own home using their own TV. The use of Atari’s Pong is intended to create a game play atmosphere, but there is no option of winning this game of ping pong because the show’s purpose is to utilize a TV monitor as a user interface to make TV art. Viewers are invited to make game controllers and stereoscopic glasses using ordinary household items such as a universal remote control or an AM/FM analog radio. This element promotes the DIY (do-it-yourself) – arts and crafts movement, while encouraging viewers to take an active role in making technology that can be apart of interactive TV history and programming.

Ping Pong TV Website

Viewers are also welcomed to share their inventions via Ping Pong TV’s website (www.pingpong.tv), an online community for the show’s fans. This website allows viewers to upload digital video recordings of their game play, since individual games are not broadcasted live and only take place in the viewers home. The website provides additional information about the show for viewers who are interested in exploring the framework for the show. It serves as an online documentation of the DIY game controllers and stereoscopic glasses made for the show. The website will house a collection of digital video recordings of user-submitted game play that are used for other episodes of Ping Pong TV.