The SeniorChannel project aimed to integrate innovative technologies and high added value content to address the social needs of older adults in the wider community.
More specifically, the project developed an Interactive Internet Protocol Television Channel, offering older adults a unique platform for accessing and interacting with a diverse range of community activities delivered through a familiar device, that is the television. Importantly, in the SeniorChannel project older adults are not conceived as passive spectators, rather they are active audience who interact with the SeniorChannel TV programs. Moreover, older adults are actively involved in the creation and products of the programs. The endeavor entailed a user-centric design approch, rigorous testing and evaluation, including the establishment of a TV studio and production center in Spain, which broadcasted programs to a select pilot user group. Feedback gathered during this phase facilitated crucial refinements, aligning the application more closely with user preferences and needs.

The team of the HTLab was responsible for the co-design activities carried out with the target users and their care-givers and for the evaluation of the componentes developed by the project. The effective involvement of older adults in such activies required a thoughful process of adaptation of the traditional methods to make it fruitful also with users with characteristics differing from the average user.

References:

Orso, V., Spagnolli, A., Gamberini, L., Ibanez, F., & Fabregat, M. E. (2017). Interactive multimedia content for older adults: the case of SeniorChannel. Multimedia Tools and Applications, 76, 5171-5189.

Orso, V., Spagnolli, A., Gamberini, L., Ibañez, F., & Fabregat, M. E. (2015, September). Involving older adults in designing interactive technology: the case of SeniorCHANNEL. In Proceedings of the 11th biannual conference on Italian SIGCHI Chapter (pp. 102-109).

Spagnolli, A., Gamberini, L., Ibanez, F., Fabregat, M. E., Debelic, T., & Orso, V. (2012). Involving Elderly Users in Design: Techniques to Collect Preferences for Interactive Digital Television. Annual Review Of Cybertherapy and Telemedicine, 233-237.