Time Warner checks in with GetGlue

Time Warner has led a US$6m round of investment in AdaptiveBlue, the New York-based start-up behind entertainment check-in service GetGlue.

Time Warner’s Turner, HBO and Warner Bros divisions are among those within the TV industry that have already partnered with GetGlue on initiatives tied into their shows.

GetGlue takes the location-based ‘check-in’ model popularised by Foursquare and applies it to general entertainment, allowing users to register the fact that they’re watching a TV programme or listening to a particular piece of music. Others competing in the space include Miso and Philo, though these specifically target TV.

Last week, GetGlue announced a promotion whereby users who check into TV shows such as House, The Simpsons, Sons of Anarchy or Jersey Shore get discounts on related merchandise. The company has also launched dedicated ‘virtual badges’ for programmes including HBO’s Boardwalk Empire and AMC’s Mad Men.

When asked at C21’s FutureMedia conference in London last month about Time Warner’s roadmap for the next 12 months, Casey Harwood, senior VP for Turner Europe, said: “We’re about to announce a number of small strategic stakes in companies we find interesting and that will illustrate where we’re going in many ways.”

The AdaptiveBlue investment is one of these. The company’s previous backers, RRE Ventures and Union Square Ventures, also contributed to this third round of funding.

The news comes after Endemol USA last week signed a partnership with Foursqure to incorporate the latter’s location-based check-in service into new and existing TV formats.