TV Academy Gives Emmy Voters Chromecast

As Emmy nominations will be announced Thursday, the Television Academy is partnering with Google for several years to give each Emmy voter a Chromecast device so that they can stream nominated shows straight to their home TV sets.  They can plug into computers, tablets, and smartphones and stream the Emmy voting platform which stores the content. 

Back in 2012, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences finally broke down and offered online voting (protected by elaborate security precautions which bedeviled many members, who seem to have gotten the hang of things. They are sending out more screeners to more branches, but still encourage big-screen Academy showings in New York, Los Angeles and London. 

On the other hand, clearly television is a medium that encourages watching in the original format, hopefully HD on a high-quality flat-screen TV. Instead of presenting programs for select panels of voters in screening rooms as in the past, TV Academy rules changes opened the final voting round to the entire membership, reports Variety. Piracy and environmental concerns prompted the Academy not to mail out DVD screeners. Instead Google will send Chromecast devices with user manuals (complete with ongoing technical support) to 18,500 voters in August. They’re keepers. 

Pirates have gotten hold of Oscar For Your Consideration screeners in the past. Will AMPAS follow the TV Academy’s lead?