7 posts tagged “broadcast”

Due to various reasons I won't go into here my post on Broadcast took a little while. Sorry for those not in my neighborhood who had to wait. Here it is.

Comments always very welcome.

Here's draft for latest post for Broadcast. As always, would really appreciate thoughts and comments.

Jens

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As audiences and advertising dollars continue to shift time and money online, most of us these days recognise the value of the medium, not only as a place to market shows, build relationships with audiences, and distribute video clips; but also as a medium where we can genuinely extend the television experience (e.g. www.americanidol.com); and launch new entertainment brands (e.g. www.bebo.com/jellybeats) and totally new products (e.g. www.webkinz.com). You’d think that with this realization we’d see a more fundamental shift in broadcasters’ commissioning budgets as well as significant content investment by online channels.

The reality is that most show-sites still adhere to some version of the “clip, pic and game” approach; nearly all broadcasters only commission online content if it’s supporting their shows (rather than see it as a distinct medium in which they operate); and online channels don’t have any significant commissioning budgets. Yes, there are some exceptions we’ve all read about in the trades, whether that’s HBO's Voyeur, Channel 4’s FourDocs or Bebo’s Kate Modern, but these are the exceptions that prove the rule.

Why is this the case, is it likely to change and what are the implications for television producers?

In the case of broadcasters it is primarily a short-term question. Understandably their business is still defined as “television”, the key success measure is ratings and most people come from within the industry. It therefore makes total sense (just about) that online is still there to predominantly service a television-driven organisation. As audiences and advertisers continue to shift towards what is already a critical mass; and some innovative broadcasters pave the way; that will change. The “business” will be redefined to something more akin to “arbiter of taste”, commissioning content cross- and irrespective of platform; success measures will include new terms such as unique users, repeat visits and time spent; and web-folk will be fast-tracked through the organisation.

In the case of online media owners it’s more mixed. A key but short-term issue is the fact that video still has a relatively small share of the overall online advertising pie. Most people we speak to believe this will change significantly within the next 12 to 18 months as more and more brand owners see the opportunity of online video advertising and allocate a larger and larger share of their overall budgets to this format. With higher budgets comes a need for more quality content that advertisers want to be associated with, which will in turn drive channel owners to offer more engaging content to satisfy their clients’ requests.

There are some more structural issues though when it comes to online which may shape the overall content budget landscape of the future. The first is that online channels are as much about functionality and services as they are about content. To attract and retain eyeballs, media owners need to offer user-friendly navigation, as well as free email, web-space, social-networking and other services, to hook users in and then send them to the content where they can sell valuable ad space (see The Economist March 22^nd). Content budgets will therefore only ever be a proportion of the overall audience investment. The second issue is that online channels can fulfil most of their content needs by licensing in and repackaging both professional and UGC video, audio and text content that’s already been produced or is being produced by their own audience, rather than taking the risk of commissioning new and exclusive content. Online channels therefore really only need (and are likely to commission) content that genuinely helps them differentiate their overall offering in the wider market, helps promote a particular service or functionality, or satisfies a particular advertiser’s need.

While this structural issue is particular to online at the moment, as the two media become more alike (i.e. on demand and interactive) it is likely to become more common to both. From a content producer’s point of view it therefore means that while, at the broadcaster the online budgets for genuine show extensions and new online properties will grow in the short to medium term; in the medium to long term commissioning budgets overall will more than likely become focussed on concepts that are either big; showcase a channel’s services and functionality; or are advertiser funded – or ideally all of the above. This means that producers will need to be in the big budget league; have an in-depth understanding of online audiences and platforms; and be aligned to an advertising agency network to stand the best chance of tapping into major content budgets in the longer term.

Posted draft here on Vox for Neighbors only a while back and just spotted it live on Broadcast. Happy reading.

Just spotted my new post on Broadcast went live. Here it is. Would be interested to hear what you think whether there or here on Vox.

Got into a groove so here's the latest post on Broadcast.

If you check out the homepage today, it's even featured there. Gosh! Let's hope I'm not talking rubbish ;-)

Have started regular slot on Broadcast in the UK. Will post on my Vox blog first but only visible to those in my neighbourhood. If you want to check out the first in a series click here.

With the explosion in broadband, ability for everyone to publish on MySpace and upload their videos onto YouTube, and people searching more and more for content (rather than being told what to watch, play or read), many pundits are declaring the death of the broadcaster, and the birth of the "plasma-screen-connected-to-the-internet-with-Google-as-their-EPG-to-other-people's-creations" society. Fact or fiction?

Well there certainly are a lot of signs pointing towards a very difficult time for TV broadcasters in 2007 and beyond. At the heart of this are three main shifts... consumers are spending more time online, they are creating more content, and are able to discover stuff they like through search and peer recommendations.

1. Let's explore the first in a little more detail. Be it the recent Ofcom report or what we see in our daily lives, the "dumb" box in the corner is definitely becoming less a part of who we are and our attention is shifting towards the PC, mobile media players, games console, and other devices. The clearest sign that this trend is for real is that a larger and larger share of advertising money is (finally) following. It is of course is the ultimate shock to the system the broadcasters needed to force them to wake up and respond to what their audience knew way back. This in many ways is quite a manageable change... people are using different screens to access essentially the same type of content... maybe a little shorter and some interactivity thrown in but that's it... right? All I need to do is create advertising inventory for my mates to buy and we're sorted.
2. Well... not really. That's the second point. People are not just spending time on the likes of AtomFilms or MiniClip (which are basically online broadcasters). They are shifting more and more towards what are essentially publishing platforms such as Metacafe, Bebo and yes... Vox. With this explosion in choice, competition is just a click away. The whole model of acquiring (exclusive) rights to help differentiate what is essentially a pipe with a logo and a couple of nice idents and some advertising strapped around it, is also starting to look tired. Now consumers can self publish and make money from it, be that through Google AdSense, Casale or other online advertising networks. 
3. But they still need to find this content, don't they? Yes, they do but that's where search and peer networks come in. Why trust what a broadcaster's scheduler thinks you should watch when you can find it yourself or check out what you friends love watching. Just try out the latest MSN Messenger where you can see the music your friends are playing or install LastFM to see what the wider community is up to, and get a glimpse of what may happen in the broadcast world.

All this frightens (or should frighten) the living day-lights out of most broadcasters. Beware the prophets of doom though... it's not that bad. In my opinion, while the above trends are real and will definitely have an impact on the TV business, consumers will still want shared viewing experiences (i.e. broadcast) of high production value content (i.e. not just user generated) recommended by taste-makers (i.e. recognised brands or people)... which means that THERE IS A ROLE FOR BROADCASTERS BEYOND 2007.

There is a "BIG SHIFT" needed though which I believe will determine the size of any role. While the core job of a broadcaster won't change - create great content that your audience want to share in - the skills required will be very very different. The big shift needed is towards the audience; big because broadcasters have been used to the good life of terrestrial television or their positions on the Sky EPG, where viewing is much more of a passive "feed me" world, where the need to REALLY ensure the audience want to share in what a commissioner has created is a lot less. Now, in an online world, if they don't like it, flick (or click) and they're off.

That in my mind is not only the biggest but also the hardest shift to make. Hard, because it will only work when the audience is part of the DNA of your business, and beyond a certain size and history it becomes very very difficult to change any business culture. The Titanic has left the dock and is sailing for the ice berg... only radical changes to structures, staffing, systems etc. will make it work.

All other changes become a function of this successful shift in culture, whether it's figuring how to produce the right content, distribute it, or what your channel brand stands for in this new world. Once you know your audience intimately and have changed the culture of your business to truly embrace them... this all becomes natural, easy and an enjoyable by-product. How to change that culture? That's another discussion altogether.