Rooftop Comedy to Launch Interactive TV Show, "That Sucks," on MavTV

Rooftop Comedy, a company that produces and distributes original comedy programming to mobile, Web, broadcast, and print outlets (including, it claims, Current TV, Apple iTunes, Yahoo!, Nokia, Hulu, FastCompany Magazine, YouTube, and TiVo), contacted [itvt] last week to let us know that on August 17th it will be premiering a participatory/interactive TV show, called "That Sucks," on digital cable channel, MavTV (carried by Comcast, Verizon, DISH Network, Time Warner Cable, Brighthouse, Charter and Cablevision).

According to the company, the show, which will be shot in HD, will center on a Web and mobile site called "Sucksbox" (sucksbox.com) that will invite viewers to answer the question, "What do you think sucks?" and that will accept answers expressed in short text submissions, digital photos, audio recordings and videos. The show will combine a selection of Sucksbox submissions with highlights of performances from stand-up comedians around the US talking about "things that suck"; the show will also feature updates on global "Suck Trends," based on the real-time information flow to the Sucksbox, Rooftop Comedy says. "Everyone thinks something sucks and wants to tell someone," Rooftop Comedy founder and CEO, Will C. Rogers, explained. "'That Sucks' provides people not only with an outlet to express themselves, but the opportunity to have their opinions broadcast nationally alongside the funniest professional stand-up comics commenting on what they think sucks. What is more gratifying than that?"

According to Rooftop Comedy, highlights from the show, as well as viewer calls-to-action, will be auto-distributed across all of the major online video portals, thereby further driving viewership to both the program and the online platform." In addition, the company says, "viewer submissions can be created from, and are automatically integrated into their Twitter and Facebook updates, providing the potential for unprecedented viral reach."