As the social TV industry comes of age, stay tuned for what Facebook has in store

Despite, and in fact perhaps even thanks to the unstoppable rise of social media, we still watch a ton of television (by which I mean content). Another fact: the way we look at TV has forever changed, in no small part because of social networking services like Twitter and Facebook, and social television apps like GetGlue, Yahoo-acquired IntoNow, Dijit-acquired Miso, Comcast’s Tunerfish and Zeebox, among others. We watch television with one or more mobile devices in our hands or within reach, and we happily share with others online what we like and don’t like when we’re watching TV. It is decidedly no longer an ‘offline experience’ for a whole lot of people, and that group is getting bigger. Social TV is anything but new, but it’s definitely maturing alongside social media companies – and content providers – ever since the MIT Technology Review dubbed it a breakthrough technology back in 2010. Social TV – an industry in full swing The symbiosis between traditional TV and social media is what led Twitter to remark that its recent acquisition of social television analytics company Bluefin Labs would “help us create innovative new ad products and consumer experiences in the exciting intersection of Twitter and TV.” An exciting intersection it is indeed – and a busy one, too. Last year, media measurement and analysis giant Nielsen acquired SocialGuide, a New York startup that also tracks Twitter and Faceboo