Disney – with the wisdom of Duane Varan, a professor in interactive television – is starting up an emerging media and advertising research lab. Varan has spent the last three years studying how consumers respond to interactive TV, split screens, sponsorships, and product placements – now it’s time to up the ante and, according to that crew, know once and for all what does and doesn’t work for consumers.

I am so crazy intrigued by this. Will we, as an industry, find ourselves more able to separate form from function? Will we, as an industry, come up with best practices for content design by medium?

I will be stalking this initiative for sure.