Stingr to demo @IBC frictionless second-screen interaction
Stingr, a new second-screen interaction platform offered by the founders of Hornets Tech, is bringing its second-screen interaction platform to IBC2026.
According to Stingr, the second screen has never really worked as it should. QR codes, on-screen prompts and fragmented journeys through search engines, social platforms and retailer websites create too many points at which viewers simply give up.
Stingr removes that friction by identifying what viewers are watching within seconds of them pointing their phone at the screen, whether the programme is live, catch-up or on demand. It then brings up the shopping opportunities, sponsor content or information connected to that exact moment. There are no QR codes, no on-screen prompts and no interruption to the broadcast.
The Stingr functionality can be built into a broadcaster’s own app, keeping the viewer experience, audience relationship and commercial opportunity under the broadcaster’s control.
For broadcasters and content owners, this creates opportunities around sponsored interactions, product placement, interactive advertising and archive content, without requiring changes to the programme or the addition of prompts to the screen.
Stingr can also deliver sign language on demand, synchronised with the programme on a second device without changing the main broadcast. This gives broadcasters and streaming services another way to expand access to their content as the industry prepares for new accessibility requirements under the UK’s Media Act 2024.
“In this industry we use the word ‘transformational’ a lot, but this really does have the potential to make a difference,” said Alistair Horne, Co-founder, Stingr. “It is a way of stimulating revenue directly, under the broadcaster’s control, not somebody else’s.”
To find out more, speak with Horne and his team at booth 10.D3 during IBC2026, which is taking place from September 11-14 at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre.
