The Viewers' Verdict is an interesting addition to this summer’s official app from Cricket Australia.

With the First Test against New Zealand underway at the Gabba, I set about my annual ritual of looking for a decent iPhone app to keep track of live scores and other stats. There’s no shortage of apps to choose from, but the Cricket Live Australia app caught my eye due to the new Viewers’ Verdict feature which lets you have your say regarding controversial decisions. While the umpires confer, just hit the big red or green button on your phone to declare whether or not you think it’s a wicket.

Cricket Live Australia is available for both iOS and Android devices, which is great to see and a sign of the times. A partnership between Vodafone and Channel Nine means we’ll also see the results of each Viewers’ Verdict on the television as we wait for the umpire’s decision. It’s even tied into Twitter and Facebook, so you can broadcast your decision to the world. Yes, I also winced at the thought of adding even more noise to the social media din, but sharing opinions is clearly one of the main drawcards of social media.

In this age of multi-tasking, many people tend to watch television with at least one gadget by their side. Sure, pushing a big button is one of those silly novelties, but I expect the Viewers’ Verdict will be popular with passionate cricket fans. It’ll also be popular with networks such as Nine which are looking for new interactivity options to keep viewers engaged. Live sport is one of the few remaining programs that people are actually prepared to watch live and suffer through the advertisements. It makes sense for Nine to go out of its way to keep armchair sports fans happy, lest they get their sporting hit elsewhere.