Blinkx inks new content deals, goes after 'double-dippers'

Video search engine Blinkx has announced content partnerships today with BBC, CBS and The Weather Channel. If you watch TV while you're on the Internet, Blinkx thinks it can be of service.

Though it does have a history of jumping the gun when it comes to announcements, Blinkx's new partners build considerably its library of 18 million indexed hours of video.

Blinkx's list of partners already includes networks HBO, A&E, Discovery networks, the History Channel, ESPN, Comedy Central, and The Learning Channel, as well as dozens of short-form content providers.

As a part of CBS' "Always On" initiative, the network's digital media group joined with Blinkx in 2006, offering locally-produced news content from affiliate CBS stations. Today's announcement extends the content offering into network properties.

The BBC will make its downloadable or streamable -- via its iPlayer software -- content searchable on Blinkx.com. All iPlayer content will be indexed with previews for users to consider before opening a stream.

Earlier this month, Blinkx contracted Harris Interactive to conduct an online survey in Great Britain, intending to reveal the connection between television viewing and internet usage. The company actually found that almost 80% of adults surveyed are what they call "double-dippers," who simultaneously watch TV and peruse the Web on separate screens. 35% of them reported to do so often or always.

This is favorable news for the search engine, since most of the Web use that took place while participants watched TV was found to accompany the programs being viewed. It's a near perfect fit for the video search engine -- when a user is watching a station partnered with Blinkx on their TV, items of interest could be found and expanded upon simultaneously on their computer.