Tell Me More - Understanding User Interaction of Smart Speaker News Powered by Conversational Search.

In this study, we apply a "conversational search" to the design of the news service of smart speakers so that users can actively get richer information while listening to the news. We designed a research prototype called "Anchor," where a smart speaker news assistant provides users with news about specific keywords and responds to users' questions. We recruited 21 participants and conducted a user study where they consumed the news with Anchor, followed by post hoc interviews. The results of the qualitative analysis revealed the following. (1) People preferred interactive news to news briefings. (2) People found it useful to get answers on their questions by talking with the assistant. (3) Although users were allowed to ask questions anytime, they often hesitated, as they did not want to miss the whole flow of the news. (4) However, they had difficulty recalling the questions they had not asked. Based on these findings, we discuss the implications for news design in a voice-only user interface.