ITV

Category: Year Enders

  • 2019 OTT TV trends in Asia and India

    2019 OTT TV trends in Asia and India

    MUMBAI: 2018 wrapped up as a fascinating year for OTT TV in Asia, with global content owners, Pay TV operators, and OTT players all ramping up their direct-to-consumer OTT offerings. With falling smartphone prices, OTT content market saw a boom in India as players across the spectrum set up shop. Original content was a game changer over the last few years, with OTT players outdoing the Bollywood big studios in their budgets. Netflix is investing Rs 500-600 crore per year into original content in India whereas Amazon Prime has announced that it would be investing around Rs 2000 crore in the same. In contrast, the budget of a Bollywood blockbuster like Padmaavat (2018) was merely Rs 200 crore.

    As content owners and pay TV operators launch — or even revamp — their direct-to-consumer OTT TV services, it’s an ongoing race to establish a business model that includes the right content, pricing, and user experience. Here’s my take on the top six trends that will shape OTT TV in India this year.

    1. Focus on the viewing customer

    While previous years have been dominated by conversations about tech or monetisation, 2019 will be dominated by a focus on the customer and enabling their access to great content. Disney’s Kevin Mayer puts this succinctly in a recent interview: “Having a better relationship with our consumer puts us in control of our own destiny.”

    2. Enabling access on every device

    Consumption trends are plotting a chart upward and to the right. Not all of this consumption is sensitive to copyright ownership, but it’s clear that video viewers have multiple devices and an internet connection, which facilitates increasing consumption. However, there’s a great deal of friction preventing these viewers from watching the content they want or even being offered the option of paying for the content they watch.

    3. Consumers want flexible payment options

    According to our OTT research, consumers have varying views across the region about whether they’re willing and happy to pay with their time (through watching advertising) or their money (subscriptions).  In 2019, we’ll see platforms using their understanding of their consumers’ preferred content to deliver premium experiences. Business model choices also need to be flexible for the consumer. In India and Asia, OTT providers could take a cue from the FMCG marketing playbook by offering sachet pricing. OTT TV providers can also offer small, low-priced subscription plans that are valid for a weekend or a week. The aim here is to enable users to sample the content and eventually convert the consumer into a more long-term subscriber.

    4. Does OTT advertising remove friction?

    Advertising paying for TV content is a contract the viewer is already familiar with. The benefit for the viewer is that they ‘pay’ with their attention. And they should receive more relevant, well-targeted ads than they would on a broadcast channel.

    Because of its highly targeted nature, ease of measurement, and tendency to have higher ad completion rates, OTT advertising is opening up new revenue streams for OTT TV providers — while also offering a highly engaging environment for brands. For advertisers, who tend to go where their audiences are, OTT TV is a beautiful mix of engaging content and addressability. It’s encouraging that agencies are seeing ad rates hit a plateau in the traditional, linear channels, while CMOs are excited by the high viewability of OTT TV services.  

    5. The content viewing experience guides OTT strategy

    According to Brightcove's OTT TV research with YouGov, trials and promotions tend to drive users to sign up for OTT services, but it’s the content itself that drives retention. We see many OTT providers not just investing in content, but also making their content work harder with content discovery and recommendation features. The research also sheds light on the importance of accessing content on mobile, which forces OTT providers to consider how their mobile OTT app could or should enhance the viewing experience. Features like offline download, which allows users to watch content when they’re not on wifi or a mobile network, and video continuity, which allows users to continue where they left off or ‘travel’ in between devices, remain desirable. All of these features are designed to increase stickiness to the service, as they allow for increased view times and encourage binge-watching habits.

    6. Pay TV operators experiment with OTT solutions

    Asia Pacific pay TV annual growth is slowly grinding to a two percent compound annual growth rate — from 267 million subscribers in 2018 to 288 million subscribers by 2023. Such low growth means that pay TV operators need to adapt to changing viewer habits by exploring the extension of their pay TV service to OTT TV services. Skinny bundles are an emerging product offering in Asia, with HOOQ launching skinny bundles in Indonesia that are targeted to tap into the 90 percent of Indonesia’s population who do not already access pay TV services. These kinds of content offerings acknowledge the difference between the buffet of the pay TV mega bundle and the a la carte personal choice of OTT TV. Understanding the context-driven difference in consumer preferences will allow pay TV operators to thrive in the OTT space.  

    Finding success in OTT TV services ultimately comes down to the viewing customer. For any global regional broadcaster or direct-to-consumer OTT service to thrive in this highly competitive environment, they must offer the desired elements to consumers.

    (The author is head of media sales, Asia, Brightcove. The views expressed here are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them)  

  • TRAI tariff order, disruption posed challenges to DPOs in 2018

    TRAI tariff order, disruption posed challenges to DPOs in 2018

    MUMBAI: Distribution platform operators (DPOs) in India trod a tricky terrain throughout 2018. Both DTH and cable operators continued to face the heat of Jio FTTH, the rapid growth of over-the-top (OTT) platforms and the uncertainties posed by the implementation of the new tariff regime towards the end of the year.

    OTT platforms and challenge of cord cutting

    With the fall in data triggered by Jio, OTT went beyond male, metro, and millennial which posed a potential threat to the cable and DTH industry. As online viewership increased rapidly, traditional distributors were exposed to the threat of cord-cutting.

    What bothered cable operators more than independent platforms was traditional broadcasters driving the B2C lane. Almost all the major broadcasters strengthened their presence on digital, offering catch-up TV along with original content, thus allowing them to bypass revenue sharing with traditional distributors without having to worry about the tariff order or down-linking permission from the government.

    KCCL CEO Shaji Mathews pointed out that broadcasters are trying to develop OTT platforms in such a way that their dependence on cable and DTH is reduced. He also added that they are developing it to push for additional viewership and to have an alternative medium.

    Jio’s FTTH foray

    After leading the wireless data revolution, Mukesh Ambani-led Jio Infocomm returned with another blockbuster offering last year – Jio GigaFiber. The grand entry in the fixed-line broadband sector was not only a challenge for broadband service providers but for cable, DTH players also as the FTTH service is bundled with additional benefits including TV service. Given that the Jio FTTH service will come at a lower cost as compared to market rates, another price war is likely to be unleashed by India’s richest man. In addition to that, the higher amount of data at better speeds will convert more people into binge-watchers of online content increasing the risk of cord-cutting.

    Jio’s entry in India’s low-penetrated FLBB sector has created opportunities for larger MSOs as the former quickly realised the difficulty of last-mile connectivity.

    “If you talk about Jio coming in the industry, we are very much positive towards it that they have recognised our structure – broadcaster, distributor, MSOs, LMOs. Since they have recognised it and tied up with major players like Den and Hathway, it’s a win-win situation for industry also,” Maharashtra Cable Operators Foundation member Asif Sayed said.

    According to Mathews, it is not the first time that the cable industry has been subjected to disruption. The advent of DTH too was rooted in disruption. According to him, the cable industry is well equipped to face the impending Jio onslaught.

    DD FreeDish growth

    Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati’s free-to-air (FTA) platform DD FreeDish too became a cause for concern for the distribution industry. The new tariff framework caps monthly cable or DTH bill of television households at Rs 130 (plus taxes) for the first 100 FTA channels. However, DD Free Dish offers the same free of cost. Doordarshan director general Supriya Sahu believes DD FreeDish is not only used by a marginal section of the society but is also evolving as an alternative option which clearly indicates that it could be a potential threat for DPOs. As per consulting firm EY, the number of DD FreeDish subscribers is expected to reach over 40 million by 2020.

    DPOs forged new alliances

    With the threat of disruption looming large, cable and DTH operators adopted new strategies to survive. Major DTH players as well as MSOs signed content deals with popular OTT platforms and rolled out hybrid set-top boxes as a counter.

    Essel group-promoted Siti Networks unveiled “SITI PlayTop” with YouTube and YouTube Kids in-built, its first hybrid set top box, in September 2018. Another leading MSO, Hathway, launched two new products – an OTT set-top box and a cable hybrid box. Mumbai-headquartered MSO IMCL’s group company ONE Fiber also introduced an OTT device. DTH companies too got in on the act. In the first half of 2018, Harit Nagpal-led Tata Sky entered into a strategic partnership with streaming giant Netflix. India’s largest DTH operator Dish TV announced the national launch of its OTT platform and DishSMRT Stick – a streaming device to make any TV smart. Jawahar Goel’s company has also planned new consumer-friendly initiatives including the launch of Hybrid connected box and integration of voice assistance in next-generation smart STB.

    Added focus on broadband

    Realising the importance of online video in the entertainment sector, MSOs and some LCOs with their existing resources focused on broadband business to further cement their positions. Cable operators with a reach of over 100 million households can easily upgrade fixed line coaxial cable to carry high-speed broadband. Fastway CEO Peeush Mahajan said his company expanded its broadband service in new locations in 2018 and the MSO’s focus will be expanding further in as many as areas possible this year. Even DTH operator Tata Sky rolled out broadband service in 15 cities as it remodeled itself as a video and broadband company.

    KCCL’s Mathews said that most major MSOs have now started investing in broadband and FTTH. He also added that the implementation of fixed-line broadband has been hampered because of various governmental issues like lack of coordination between the various ministries on issues like license fee and difficulties in acquiring licenses.

    VAS remained key

    While the ARPU growth was on the lower side across the ecosystem, DTH operators invested in various value-added-services to drive growth. Dish TV launched VAS services for both DishTV and D2H brands such as ‘Bhojpuri Active’, ‘Fitness Active’ among others with an objective of delivering quality content to consumers across regions in their language. Tata Sky too expanded its regional services with the launch of VAS like Tata Sky Telugu Cinema and Tata Sky Tamil Cinema. At the end of year, it also launched Tata Sky ShortsTV, a service dedicated to curated short stories and films.

    DTH sector’s sluggish growth

    The growth of direct to home (DTH) subscriber base of private players in India was the slowest over the last five years for the nine month period ended 30 September 2018 (TQY 2018, TQY period, three quarters of the year under review) as per TRAI. The good news was that the quarter ended 30 June 2018 (Jun-18, last or previous quarter) saw a reversal of fortunes. From a loss of about 30,000 (0.003 crore, 0.3 million, 0.3 lakh) subscribers in the quarter ended 31 March 2018 (Mar-18), DTH subscriber growth was positive 18.4 lakh (0.184 crore, 1.84 million) for the quarter ended 30 June 2018 (Jun-18). However, in the case of the quarter ended 30 September 2018 (Sep-18), subscriber growth has once again nose-dived to just 8,000 subscriber additions.

    New tariff regime

    The most crucial development of 2018 was TRAI’s win against Star India in the Supreme Court with regards to the new tariff order. With the radical change in the overall ecosystem, the organisations sounded cautiously optimistic. The new rule is expected to bring transparency in the value chain along with creating a level playing field for all stakeholders.

    While broadcasters and DTH platforms are likely to be benefitted, LCOs seem highly concerned about what’s in store for them. LCOs feel the 80-20 revenue share will work for DTH operators but not for MSOs. They prefer a share cap for LCOs instead of taking it out from the 20 per cent that MSOs have. While the deadline to implement the order was 28 December 2018, TRAI offered respite to the sector handing an extension until 31 January 2019 to ensure a smooth transition.

    With less than a month to go, DPOs have also started updating new channel prices and packages on their websites to inform consumers. Many large MSOs like Hathway, DEN Networks and Siti Cable have come up with "suggestive packs" bundling popular channels of all major broadcasters. Moreover, as TRAI has withdrawn its appeal before the Supreme Court to reinstate the 15 per cent cap on discounting of channel bouquets under the new regime, DPOs say now the order lacks value. As broadcasters now can give a discount of 50-60 per cent on bouqets keeping the a-la-carte channel price high, DPOs will not be in a position to package their products.

    Given the fact that there will be some time needed for consumers to adjust to the new structure, broadcasters may call for a rating blackout for at least six to eight weeks. However, it will not be the first rating blackout. When the industry went from analogue to digital distribution, the ratings were held back for around nine weeks. Though initially there was chaos, later both cable operators and DTH platforms reaped benefit from digitisation. “TRAI tariff order implementation provides transparency in the system and gives more choice to the consumer. Dish TV has been prepared to implement the new tariff order and stands to benefit with faster and healthier growth,” India’s largest operator Dish TV feels.

    Standing at the next revolution in TV industry, time will tell how the new regime will pan out for stakeholders. 

  • Infotainment went the local way in 2018

    Infotainment went the local way in 2018

    MUMBAI: In 2018, the one common phenomenon that the whole television industry witnessed was the hijack and capture of part of its territory by OTT platforms wooing audiences with original content. That was the time when TV space woke up to secure its presence and fill in the gaps with localised content where it required the most. One of the genres that decided to focus on localising content was infotainment.

    There were days when only syndicated content was the staple of the broadcasters to survive in the market. The year 2018 finally saw their efforts paying off as viewers stayed glued to their TV screens. Original content broke all the walls by wanting the audiences to have more of it. However, the FICCI M&E report 2018 estimated  that BARC’s enhanced rural panel weightage would reduce the viewership of genres like infotainment. The factual genre occupies only about one per cent of total TV consumption.

    Players like Discovery, History TV18, National Geographic, Nat Geo Wild, Epic TV and Sony BBC Earth rolled up their sleeves with the intent to stay out of the box by offering self-produced content, keeping in mind the evolving taste buds of the Indian audiences. It is usually tricky to change audiences’ viewing habits when they have forever been fed with a plethora of syndicated content. But during the year, there came a time when Sony BBC Earth leapfrogged Discovery in terms of ratings, that was ruling the infotainment genre for almost a decade, within a year of its launch. The channel increased its market share from 22 per cent to 26 per cent in the six metro cities.

    It was a tough competition for both Sony BBC and Discovery channel that fought sportingly to win the battle and emerge as the dominant player in the market. Speaking about being on the leadership front, Discovery claimed to enjoy a 23 per cent market share in the All India Urban (2+) area.

    In an earlier interview, Sony Pictures Network English cluster business head Tushar Shah told Indiantelevision.com that the category which is supposed to be informative along with entertainment in it is missing the first half. But for Sony BBC Earth, the rise from the sixth position to the top has been quick. Sony BBC Earth stood at 5 per cent market share at launch and took up 22 per cent within a year backed by a strong distribution network, strategic content line-up and strong marketing innovations.

    One major move was the shift of Epic from a general entertainment channel (GEC) to infotainment. It proved to be a success as the channel’s market share scaled up from 3 per cent to 15 per cent. History TV18 also dived into serving local content.

    The genre wasn’t just about the hindi speaking market, in fact, it observed an upward arc due to regional support as well. Broadcasters found Tamil and Telugu as viable regional languages to launch into. Discovery and National Geographic channels are the only exceptions having Bengali language in their kitty. Epic TV is the only one with Hindi language. It is also the only channel that has all India-centric content while the rest of the players have a mix of syndicated content and home-grown shows. If you take into account Discovery Tamil, the channel's share of the pie grew by four per cent. That placed the Discovery network miles ahead of anyone else with a national market share of a massive 42 per cent.

    As far as Adex is concerned, the year 2017 led to a growth of 1.8 per cent, whereas it led to 1.9 per cent during FY18. Moreover the growth in the year FY17-18 was witnessed to be 2.38 per cent and the lifestyle genre dropped down to 2.24 per cent.

    While local content will continue to be a major part of broadcasters' move for 2019 as well, we can only wait and watch what new innovations will they launch to engage a larger section of the audience.

  • Indian M&E saw mix of regulations change the game in 2018

    Indian M&E saw mix of regulations change the game in 2018

    MUMBAI: If TRAI’s tariff regime for the Indian broadcast and cable sectors did not occupy top mind space of the industry in 2018, the year just gone by could also boast of some other major regulatory exploratory moves that could have deep impact on the sector in the near future; especially those relating to data protection, digital communication policy and online content that, according to some critics, is on a freeway with no checks and balances.

    Though many would say that the Indian media sector continues to be a challenging market (a polite euphuism for high level of regulation) offering tantalising opportunities because of sheer numbers on offer, Indian policy-makers have always had to counter such perceptions and, like their peers in many other parts of the globe, have at times found themselves outpaced by technology.

    Increasing protectionism aka economic nationalism around the world, led by the likes of US, the UK and China, resonates very well with Indian politicians and policy-makers too. And, such a trend is led more by regulations.

    Year 2018 has seen an interesting mix of regulations (some are still in the formative stages) for the Indian media and entertainment sector. Here we try to capture some of the annual highlights.

    Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

    Broadcast carriage regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)’s new tariff regime that had been embroiled in legal tangles hogged the limelight throughout 2018 with judicial directions clearing some hurdles. The last part relating to the 15 per cent discount cap was also dismissed as withdrawn in the Supreme Court.

    Issued early 2017, tariff regime aims to do away with bundling of TV channels and offering them on a la carte basis to consumers, apart from other directions like caps on discounts to consumers and distributors of content. The regulation’s main aim was to empower further a consumer who has primarily grown up on a diet comprising free meals. I-should-have-access-to-200-TV-channels-and-best-content-but-will-pay-a-nominal-monthly-fee attitude has over the years definitely spoilt the Indian consumer and part of the blame does lie with the industry that has been subsidising costs in a mad race for numbers.

    Now that TRAI wants to break those shackles of the consumer, industry stakeholders also have been pushing back against changes in the status quo. If content aggregators or broadcasters are to be blamed for subsidising costs, distributors, especially LCOs, too should be blamed for refusing to change with time and technology that have now brought them to the precipice where saying no to technological changes and upgradation could only hurl them towards closure. Lack of proper awareness and education of consumer too has created a vote bank of sorts that wants to consume global dishes at Indian rates.

    TRAI could be blamed for many things, but certainly not for lack of transparency. One of the most transparent regulators in the country, not only does it hold wide ranging discussions with stakeholders and industry, but has made some good recommendations too. For example, the regulator’s suggestions on ease of doing broadcast business, a new DTH policy and even use of foreign satellites or Open Sky Policy are not only radical but progressive and industry-friendly.

    However, many such nuggets are not implemented by nodal ministries like the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Department of Telecoms and Department of Space.

    In 2019 it is to be seen the stand TRAI takes on issues like proposed changes in audience measurement, OTT platforms (excluding video content) and the fast disappearing boundaries between telecom and traditional media companies as business interests converge.

    Ministry of Information and Broadcasting

    For MIB the year 2018 has been a roller-coaster ride with a former minister making more news than policies it has framed and rolled back. Whether it was a purported crackdown on social media and online journalists or handing out diktats to Indian TV channels to shift to Indian transponders or face the music or planning a social media hub within the ministry to track Indians’ digital footprints, TV-actress-turned-politician Smriti Irani has been in the limelight too often… till a Cabinet reshuffle saw her relinquish her MIB responsibilities to her junior minister Rajyavardhan Rathore in the first quarter of the year.  

    Irani waded into controversies because of her largely perceived unpopular move to create a panel in April 2018 to explore regulations for online media/news portals and online content. It did not help her or the government’s cause as this announcement, though being hinted at for several months, came close on the heels of a widely protested move to cancel accreditation of journalists if found peddling fake news, while the government did not define clearly what constituted fake news.

    Though the order was rescinded at the behest of the PM’s Office, the move had antagonised not just online journalists, but also social media players (many of whom are backed and funded by government’s sympathisers) and video-on- demand portals. That the responsibilities have been now passed on to Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) tells how hot a potato it had been — and still continues to be with the latter being able to only partially address some of the issues.

    It would be an understatement to say that the past two years have been a difficult period for the Indian media and entertainment (M&E) sector what with after-effects of demonetisation of high value currency notes late 2016 and a new tax regime of GST rolled out last year. The story remains the same for ease of doing business in the sector as well.

    MIB is still to focus on the recommendations made by TRAI on 'Ease of Doing Business in Broadcasting Sector’ and implement them in letter and spirit. A unilateral decision by the previous leadership of MIB to impose a processing fee of Rs 100,000 per day/channel on temporary live uplinking of events (such as sports) and the same amount for seeking minor amendments (like change in name, logo, etc) is still causing heart burns.

    What was the rationale behind such moves to review processing fees? Allegedly non-revision for several years and that such a move could bring in some revenue for the government. But, should a government use licensing/permission fee as means of revenue maximisation? Probably, no.

    Towards the end of 2018, a proposal to amend the mandatory sports sharing rules to allow all distributing platforms to re-transmit sports programmes on Doordarshan’s terrestrial network where the rights lie with a private sector TV channel is unlikely to please those broadcasters who have invested billions of dollars in getting premium content for the Indian region. Giving up exclusivity would hurt the business, the sports broadcasters have chorused. It is to be seen how the MIB reacts to criticism of such a proposal.

    A revision of the DTH policy too is hanging fire as is an overhaul of the film certification processes as suggested by the Shyam Benegal committee. Interestingly, clearances for new TV channels too slowed down in 2018.

    Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity)

    For the Indian M&E sector, Meity gained importance in 2018 as proposals to regulate OTT platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, YouTube, etc fell in its lap as has the proposal to frame content guidelines for the country’s burgeoning digital sector.

    If online video distribution is growing in India, so has the demand for content regulation. Even as Indian policy-makers struggle to understand the business model(s) for digital players, the cry for regulation to suit Indian sensibilities (or lack of it) too has increased. Netflix Indian original Sacred Games is still fighting out a legal case, while informal warnings have gone to other Indian OTT platforms too to tone down edgy programming being streamed.

    Bouncing amongst several government organisations (MIB, TRAI and Meity), the issue of online content regulation was a hotly debated topic in India with a large section of the industry pushing for self-regulation like those prevailing for TV content.

    If not in 2018, some sort of content regulation for online video will definitely come. With general elections round the corner in Q1 of 2019, Meity has preferred to sit over the issue of online content regulations.

    In response to a question asked by Congress Party’s Dr AM Singhvi few days back, the government informed Rajya Sabha or Upper House  that it has no proposal to introduce a legislation to codify web media and news portals or to introduce legislation for mandatory registration of web news portals. So, it’s truce for the time being.

    Department of Space

    Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) over the years has done some incredible work, including making the country an important player in the realm of global space industry. But in its zeal it has also ended up with several conflicts of interest — most importantly being a player and a gatekeeper or a regulator too.

    Thus, despite PM Modi’s government claiming it has eased norms for doing business in India, the foreign players in the space sector will always say otherwise. Year 2018 was no change from previous years as DoS and ISRO continued to push for increased reliance on Indian satellites for delivering broadcast and telecoms services while having inadequate capacities to match ballooning domestic demand.

    That satellites can play a critical role in deployment of broadband in remote places in India makes it imperative that a collaborative outlook on Indian and foreign satellites is taken. However, a new space policy, drafted in 2018 and likely to be brought in Parliament sometime in 2019, has left most foreign players and investors with an uneasy feeling as early readings suggest restrictive norms.  

    Department of Telecoms

    One of the biggest telecoms market in the world, India’s total subscriber numbers are a shade over 1191.40 million, while the wireless segment clocked a subs base of 1,169.29 million end of September 2018 as per data collated by TRAI. And, this humungous growth in mobile tele density has been fuelled by cheap feature phones and data packages at throwaway prices, though the internet infrastructure continues to be patchy.

    And, one of the biggest policy decisions of 2018 has been the formulation of the National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP), 2018 that seeks to unlock the transformative power of digital communications networks to achieve the goal of digital empowerment by attracting investments of about $ 100 million over the next few years.

    The NDCP 2018 aims to accomplish the strategic objectives by 2022 of broadband for all, creating four million additional jobs in the digital communications sector, enhancing the contribution of the digital communications sector to 8 per cent of India’s GDP from 6 per cent in 2017 apart from several other aims.

    The NDCP will aim to have more synergies amongst various government organisations, stopping just short of creating an over-arching communications regulatory body for broadcast, telecoms and digital realms.

    In some ways every new beginning comes with a mix of hope and fear, but India’s telecoms, broadcast, cable and digital sectors do have many upsides to look out for in 2019. That is, if policy-makers do uphold their part of the bargain of easing norms for doing businesses even while empowering the consumer and making the country an investor-friendly destination.

  • What were the merger trends for marketing in 2018?

    What were the merger trends for marketing in 2018?

    MUMBAI: The year 2018 will be known for a lot of things. It has been one of the most imperative years for the advertising and media industry. This year broke shackles and ideologies of how people traditionally perceived the industry. I think it is safe to say that the marketing books hereon will have a dedicated page for everything that occurred in 2018.

    I am optimistic about 2018 being one of the best years for A&M industry (so far). Why, you ask? Because this has been one of the most momentous year for mergers and acquisitions. While news about mergers came in from all sectors of the media, the A&M world tasted its first big bite of consolidation this year.

    We’ve all read and heard about the four extensive types of mergers, but it was only in 2018 where we witnessed all of them! The traditional case of two big networks (agencies) coming together, big agencies merging their businesses with small agencies, two small agencies coming together to take on big network agencies, and the most recent trend: consultancy firms opening agencies or merging with one.

    Let’s start with the advertising giant WPP, where we saw a lot of action happen this year. One of the bigger mergers this year happened within the WPP group, where Wunderman and J. Walter Thompson were united to form Wunderman Thompson. The merger will help the group as Wunderman and J. Walter Thompson share many core clients, who will now have simpler access to the expertise of both agencies. Additionally, WPP’s GroupM, the leading global media investment group acquired an Indian digital agency, The Glitch. With this acquisition, The Glitch continues to work as an independently positioned brand, while taking advantage of GroupM’s larger infrastructure and ecosystem. 

    With a promise to simplify the business, WPP’s Chief Executive Officer merged one of its largest agencies, Y&R with VML, that left the ad industry gasping for breath. The disappearance of the 95-year-old Y&R brand, which had been part of the WPP empire since 2000, was a moment to pause and reflect on the pressures that the industry in general and ad agencies, in particular, are facing from changing client demands.

    Similarly, international advertising agency M&C Saatchi acquired Manish Bhatt-led Scarecrow Media, where the new entity is called M&C Saatchi Scarecrow. This is M&C Saatchi’s full-fledged attempt to get a stronger foothold in one of the most competitive ad markets in the world, India. Advertising agencies are finding ways to navigate through an increasingly volatile landscape. One of those ways is consolidating the hundreds of agency brands under their roofs and merging the entity with another agency. 

    After years of headlines about consultancy companies eating ad agencies’ lunches, the two groups are increasingly starting to look alike. The consultancies are rising fast by gaining a foothold in the marketing department and wooing chief marketing officers with their vast array of data analytics solutions and strategies to solve big business problems that traditional agencies can no longer solve. Increasingly, we are seeing a lot of consultancies merging their business and resources with agencies to deliver better solutions to clients. The trend of consultancies and agencies coming together is shaking up the marketing industry. In 2018, we saw the likes of Accenture Interactive, PwC Digital Services, IBM iX and Deloitte Digital emerge as winners for brands as they are looking for areas to cut costs and drive better performance.

    Right now, we’re at a point where the industry cares less about agency labels than ever before. This is an industry where so many people worry about whether something is an ad agency, a digital agency, a PR agency, or a consultancy. This may be the first time where the labels of agencies don’t really matter.

    If your merger translates to 1+1=2, the merger makes no sense because there is no added value to it. However, only if your merger translates to 1+1 >2 (greater than 2), the time, effort and money that you put into the merger will be beneficial for both parties involved.

    At the end of the day, I think consolidation is the way to go because it helps in playing on each other’s strength and delivering better results collectively. If agencies find the right partner to complement their existing skill set, it is only beneficial for both the parties. More importantly, the agencies and clients need to evolve with the changing time because their customers are evolving at a faster pace than them.

    (The author is chief executive officer and co-founder, White Rivers Media. The views expressed here are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them)

  • Marketing in 2018: Led by revenues, ditched creativity

    Marketing in 2018: Led by revenues, ditched creativity

    MUMBAI: Long gone are the times when advertising and marketing industry in India was a small-scale business with just a few creative heads scratching their brains and churning out a minuscule number of campaigns. With the growing disposable income and aspiration to own premium goods and experience quality services, customers in India are willing to explore more, thus prompting sellers to market their products better.

    2018 was, in many ways, a cornerstone year for brands and agencies alike as they tried to peg more and more consumers to their base. The impact of demonetisation and GST gradually faded, thus allowing the brands to spend more than the previous year on marketing their products. As revealed by Zenith’s Advertising Expenditure Forecasts, the ad spends for India in the year 2018 are expected to close at Rs 62,699 crore. This number is around 10-12 per cent higher than what 2017 saw. And 2019 looks even better. The same Zenith forecast reveals that total adex for India will see an increase of 15 per cent and climb up to Rs 72,169 crore in 2019.

    As per Ethinos Digital Marketing MD Sidharth Hegde, most brands tend to spend between 7-15 per cent of their total revenue on marketing and advertising. “This percentage of spends is likely to continue, however, large brands are looking to insource a lot of the marketing and advertising that will help them save large amounts of funds that would now be going to external agencies,” he says.

    Hegde also gives a breakdown of the expenses, “In 2018, the average firm was expected to allocate 42 per cent of their marketing budget to online, and this rate is expected to grow to 45 per cent by 2020. Social media advertising investments will continue to grow, with a 17 per cent compound annual growth rate from 2016 to 2021, and is expected to represent 25 per cent of total online spending in 2018. Investment in paid search, display advertising, social media advertising, online video advertising, and email marketing is predicted to account for 46 per cent of all advertising by 2021.”

    It is clear from his predictions and is obvious otherwise as well, that digital is, in fact, seeing massive growth in India. Dentsu Aegis Network chairman and CEO – south Asia Ashish Bhasin seconds this thought and describes 2018 as the year that will be remembered as “when digital became an integral part of the marketing mix”.

    Bhasin notes, “I think this (2018) was the year in which digital came to the forefront. From being a nice-to-have part of strategy it became an integral part of the marketing mix. This was partly helped by the JIO effect as it brought down the prices of data and increased the bandwidth available. Also, the falling prices of smartphones made it happen.”

    He further adds, “And I take that by 2020, one-fourth of the advertising market will be digital. In 2022, the number of Indians reached by internet will nearly be the same as those reached by television.”

    Mirc Electronics Limited (Onida) head of marketing Pratyush Chinmoy says, “One clearly visible trend (in 2018) was companies increasing their digital pie in the overall marketing spends, in recognition of shifting consumer touchpoints. Many industry leaders also saw impressive growth in video marketing, OTT media, with the consumer from all walks of life, consuming data at a much faster pace than ever before helped by telecom price decreases.”

    But does that mean digital will overpower the other ‘traditional modes’ of advertising? Ashish Bhasin doesn’t think so. He quips, “When the tides are rising, all the boats rise along. In India, we are currently in a position where all the media are growing; be it print, TV, or digital, and it will remain so for the next 5-10 years. So, it is not digital vs print or print vs TV, or TV vs digital, it is digital and TV, and print, and OOH for India.”

    An IBEF report also supports this claim of Bhasin. According to its September 2018 report on Media and Entertainment, in FY 2018, TV advertising was the largest contributor to the country’s advertising revenue, generating Rs 223.5 billion closely followed by print that generated revenue of Rs 210.6 billion. Digital advertising generated revenues worth Rs 116.3 billion.

    Chinmoy also shares a similar brief based on some internal data, “In a period of Jan ’18 to Oct ’18, leading brands have spent around Rs 270 crore. Television has continued to gather a major pie, with print coming in second. In 2019, the spends are expected to slightly increase by a factor of 10-15 per cent.”

    He also adds, “While OTT caters to a subset of the television audience with a different offering altogether in terms of content, it has still a long way to go to catch up with television spends.”

    JHS Svendgaard Laboratories MD Nikhil Nanda adds an interesting insight, “As far as marketing trends are concerned, digital is growing fast but television and print still remain as traditional and dominant mediums. Content has been ruling the market and OTT. Disruptive marketing and radio are picking up faster than digital.”

    N Chandramouli, CEO of TRA Research has the same input. He notes, “There is no TV or OTT for the consumer. They only know the screen. None of the advertisements in such platforms are getting consumed and only the skip button catches their attention. Smart brands are focusing on consumer basis for transactions and what urges it fulfils in them, rather than present product benefits. Brands must see it as an integrated consumer experience, not as how it is delivered.”

    But Hegde differs slightly as he mentions that according to TDG Research, ad spend on OTT is projected to hit $40 billion by 2020, which is nearly half of the $85 billion in forecasted total TV ad revenue. “Also, with the influx of cheap and easily available internet, more and more users are bound to ditch the traditional TV for OTT services,” he says.

    2018 was a grand year for many agencies as many national and international honours fell upon them, the grandest being creative and impactful campaigns that were churned out in the past year; the most impressive being Piyush and Prasoon Pandey getting the prestigious Lion of St. Marks honour at the Cannes. Yet the industry feels 2018 was not a very impressive year when it comes to creativity in marketing campaigns.

    Chandramouli says, “2018 has not been an impressive year in brand creation. In the wake of a slow sales year, most of it has been attempts at selling. This, unfortunately, was based on a wrong premise because the consumer is dramatically changing.  If you sell, they don't want to buy.”

    Ashish Bhasin shows more or less the same emotion, “I think it has overall been a good year but not a great year in terms of creativity on TV because there haven’t really been any breakthrough campaigns that stood out at the national level.”

    He adds, “I think this is because the creativity in digital has significantly improved and for digital creative films from India have been getting digital identification. I think the first example that is a big name is the ‘Powerless Queen’, which was done by WatConsult, which internationally won some 15-20 awards, which we really hadn’t seen earlier for a digital campaign. We have seen print campaigns win, TV campaigns win but I guess it is a sign of coming times more creative efforts will be put in digital and we will see more of that in 2019.”

    Nikhil Nanda, however, differs in his observation. He notes, “Creatively, storytelling took the driving seat and advertisements showing the brand or products were more subtle. Whether it was an ad meant for digital/social channels or OTT alone, the more impressive the story, the better it was for the brands. Also, social causes and emotions took centre stage. Case in point: Colgate strong teeth campaign with Deepika Padukone and her mother. Campaigns in 2019 will be strongly inclined toward emotional and adopting better health habits storytelling.”  

    While 2018 was a pretty impressive year with its highs and lows, marketing agencies are now looking up to 2019 with a twinkle in their eyes. Big events like general elections and cricket world cup will be ruling the year and thus there will be a great influx of money as well.

    Bhasin believes that 2019 will see around 12 per cent growth in ad revenues. He believes that India is all set to reach the $10 billion mark in advertising in the coming year. This sentiment comes after taking into consideration some facts. Bhasin notes, “Advertising is very susceptible to sentiments. If a stable government, which is considered pro-business, is in power then the sentiments of the brands and marketers improve. They tend to spend more. Otherwise, advertising is the easiest expenditure to cut. I am hopeful that we will show good economic growth and will have a good monsoon, so we have a good performance.”

    While Bhasin is hopeful, Chandramouli sees 2019 as a difficult year for brands and marketers. He says, “2019 is a slippery year ahead, with brands not investing in new things.  So, the way to go for brands is to understand the consumer basis for trust and their innate sense of desire. Other than a few who will stand out using consumer insights and buying propensity understanding, many brands will continue to waste their money on campaigns irrelevant to the consumer. Brands that only try to sell will not get bought. Those that help the consumer buy, will be loved.”

    Another trend that might rule the advertising and marketing industry in 2019 will be of consolidations. Bhasin notes, “I think there is a process of consolidation that has started in advertising globally. We saw one of the oldest agencies JWT being merged into Wunderman this year. Even in India, there are six groups that control about 85-90 per cent of the advertising market. I see that this process of consolidation will only go bigger.”

    He further adds, “The legacy agencies will come under pressure now. The groups that have been formed in the new age and are more digital-savvy, who have more proportion of the business coming from the digital will do well. Big names that have been in the market for 100 years will suddenly now start feeling the pressure and start feeling the heat. We saw the beginning of that in 2018, we will see more of that in 2019.”

    All in all, 2019 looks like a great year for the brands and marketing agencies as it comes with its own shares of challenges and opportunities. The industry is very positive about the revenues but a little work on the creativity side is required to make 2019 a year better than the gone by.

  • Ten events that shook television in 2018

    Ten events that shook television in 2018

    TV18 seized operational control of Viacom18

    India’s richest man Mukesh Ambani’s RIL rode the telecom, media and technology convergence wave better than most. The billionaire kick-started the year with a bang as he intensified TV18’s stake to 51 per cent by acquiring 1 per cent of Viacom18’s equity from Viacom Inc. for a cash consideration of $20 million. Viacom and Viacom18 also extended their brand and content license agreement by 10 years. That’s not all, RIL also pocketed a small but significant five per cent stake in content powerhouse Eros International.

    Consolidation in TV distribution

    The Indian market wasn’t exempted from the global merger frenzy. The coming together of two large DTH operators – Dish TV India and Videocon d2h – was finally concluded in 2018, creating the largest DTH service provider in the country with a subscriber base of about 29 million. One of the biggest attractions for Dish TV as the acquirer was Videocon’s significantly higher average revenue per user (ARPU). Significantly, the combined entity’s ARPU was Rs 207 in the second quarter as opposed to Dish TV’s standalone ARPU of Rs 144 pre-merger. The deal also helped Dish TV position itself better when it came to negotiating with broadcasters.

    Uday Shankar named Disney APAC boss

    A blockbuster deal that came through this year was the $71 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox assets, including Star India, by Disney. After a long and sustained bidding war with Comcast, the Mouse House got its hands on much of the Murdoch empire. Late in the evening of 13 December came the announcement that Uday Shankar would be taking over as chairman of Star and Disney India and president of the Walt Disney Company Asia Pacific. Under the new structure, has multiple Disney executives reporting into him. Having run circles around Disney in India, Uday now shoulders the responsibility of entertaining more than half the world’s population. More TV disruption guaranteed.

    Jio unveiled ominous FTTH plans

    From formally launching FTTH service Jio GigaFiber to acquiring majority stakes in two large MSOs to speed up the rollout, the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio was definitely the centre of attention in 2018. Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) made an investment of Rs 2,290 crore for 66 per cent stake in Den and Rs 2,940 crore for 51.3 per cent stake in Hathway. It will save RIL the cost of reaching out to customers as well as making the last mile connectivity easier in its ambitious bid of seizing control over India’s wired broadband business. As the Jio juggernaut marked its entry into India’s multi-billion-dollar cable TV and DTH businesses, traditional players eyed the development with a healthy mix of skepticism and optimism.

    OTT streaming gathered momentum

    When it came to content, OTT platforms captured the zeitgeist of 2018. Premium digital video content was relentlessly rolled out by the likes of Amazon Prime, Netflix, ALT Balaji, Hotstar, Voot and Zee5, keeping the audiences hooked at all times. Naturally, the band of programmers at some of India’s biggest broadcast networks felt the heat as a new wave of content competition hit India. Heads of Hindi GECs pulled out all stops in order to stay ahead of the game and keep their viewers happy. Thankfully for them, the cord-cutting trend, prevalent in several countries, didn’t grab India’s undivided attention. However, the sheer scale and quality of OTT content audiences were exposed to this year should be a cause for worry entertainment channels.

    Stalwarts made intriguing moves

    It was also a year of full surprises for the Hindi GECs, especially on the leadership front. Top-notch industry executives decided to call it quits including veteran Colors CEO Raj Nayak who dropped the bombshell of his Viacom18 exit after a distinguished seven-year stint with the media and entertainment conglomerate. Another prominent personality Discovery India and South Asia head Karan Bajaj also called it a day. Industry insiders believe the bespectacled Bajaj timed his exit to perfection, stepping aside when it mattered most. Both of them haven’t hinted at what gigs they are likely to take up next. Another heavyweight – Deepak Rajadhyaksha – who was heading Zee TV, turned to Viacom18 with his mantle being handed over to the broadcaster’s English cluster head Aparna Bhosle.

    Regional forces staged forward

    As far as content consumption was concerned, regional content too made its mark this year. While Hindi language consumption remains the country’s preferred choice, growth was fastidiously led by regional content. Backing this up with some facts, it was reported that the daily tune-ins on TV by the HSM led to 68.4 per cent, whereas in the South market it led to 78.3 per cent. Simultaneously, the advertisement expenditure in FY18, Hindi GECs declined by nine per cent as compared to an increase of 5.4 per cent in on regional channels. This was in line with growing investments made by broadcasting majors in the expansion of their regional offerings.

    Television business retained rhythm

    Channels continued to be launched in 2018 with almost all networks rolling out new offerings in regional languages – a trend which began over 2016 and 2017. Colors Tamil, Sony Marathi, Star Sports 3, Zee Keralam among others were unfurled for viewers by the major players. What's keeping broadcasters buoyant is the annual expansion in advertising continues unabated at about nine to 10 per cent annually. So, though traditional pay TV is not dead yet and will continue to grow in India as the saturation point is still far from over (BARC India estimates there are about 197 million TV homes in India over 100 million still to be covered), traditional media players have realised OTT and other forms of digital delivery of video — professional or user-generated — will continue to grow and put pressures on ARPUs and other numbers as more Indians take to smartphones and devises with broadband infrastructure slowly improving and cost of data plummeting in the short term.

    Tariff order turbulence

    TRAI’s new tariff regime, proposed first quarter 2017, continued to cast a shadow in 2018 with confusion relating to some aspects (like a 15 per cent cap on discounts to consumers for TV channels) lingering on like an unfinished record playing out discordant notes. While TRAI has sought clarification from the Supreme Court on the discount issue (the next hearing is sometime in January 2019), it has simultaneously cracked the whip on broadcasters and distribution platforms to fall in line with its new tariff regime by end of the present year.

    Major overhaul in the offing at ZEEL

    Subhash Chandra and family along with its advisors met in Mumbai over the Diwali weekend to undertake a strategic review of its businesses in view of the changing global media landscape. It was decided to undertake a strategic review of Essel's shareholding in ZEEL with a view to maximize value for the business. The proposed transaction to divest up to 50% of Essel's holding to such a strategic partner. Essel appointed Goldman Sachs Securities (India) Ltd. as their investment banker and US and European based LionTree as an international strategic advisor for this exercise. Essel expects the outcome of the strategic review to be concluded by March/April 2019.

  • Trends that will shape the trajectory of content space and its marketing

    Trends that will shape the trajectory of content space and its marketing

    MUMBAI: Content and brands have coherently managed to revolutionise how the audience consumes daily content across all platforms. Engaging trends have been discovered in recent years like the advent of digital content. But as new platforms gain massive popularity, they demand a subtle shift in the substance of their content, be it TV series, television ads, short stories or full-fledged films. The way this content is measured needs to be altered.

    Here are the trends we believe have, and will shape the future trajectory of the content space and its marketing and discovery activities.

    Changing dynamics between Bollywood and brands/falling associations

    The association between Bollywood actors and brands has led to some legendary advertisements in the past. With our favourite romance actors using fragrant perfumes or our action heroes getting their adrenaline rush from flavourful sodas, our minds were enticed with aspirational imagery. In the recent years the heros and heroines are no longer the quintessential epitomes of beauty and machismo and are now more real and approachable. Similarly, the content in films has undergone a major transformation from fantasy to reality as well; with real films like Raazi, Thugs of Hindostan, Padman, Parmanu, Raid and more, which are no longer utopian but pragmatic and vulnerable. On account of this, the synergies and content in branding and films are being redefined. On the other hand  in lieu of the changing psychographics and mindsets, brands are also redefining the space and tonality. It will be sometime till this space goes back to multiple associations, till then we will see a decline from what was the case 5 years back.

    Discovering digital content

    The hurdled journey from creating content to posting it has become nullified with digital media. Short films can now become huge blockbusters at the click of a button. But those very films can also get lost amongst the crowd of a million videos that are uploaded online each day. The challenges of marketing and discovery remain. Marketing and distribution are the key pillars to content discovery and both are now being redefined as content of your preference is suggested on your screens by various influencers.

    Authority figures like ‘Critics Choice Short Film Awards’ (which celebrates best short form content in an unbiased way) help promote worthy films that may otherwise go unnoticed. They can assist in introducing new genres and gaining recognition in the digital space.

    In future the recommendation search engine will be redefined by using consumer psychographics to predict future choices based on those made in the present, without the restriction of a single platform.

    Going beyond the unrealistic assumption of a single genre preference towards mapping consumer’s complex choices they could track content preferences across multiple genres (Multi digital platforms (audio/video/text), print, television).Thereafter, creating sub-genres for curated consumption by looking at movies, Ted talks, books, magazines and more.

    Social media and its expanding reach towards content consumption

    Social media giants like Facebook continue to reign as network favourites across the globe. And now this expansive reach is moving towards High badge value shows i.e. those that attract more shares, by having content that is socially progressive. Touching an emotional nerve and focusing on affiliate communities, it is attracting a large viewer base. But as this shift occurs, the rules of the consumption game must change. Platforms must adapt to the varying attention span of consumers, as the first three seconds define the popularity of the videos. Visually impactful imagery is a mandate for all content as shooting goes beyond handheld devices towards High Definition. Every social media channel now holds an untapped viewership potential which must be shown to promote valuable content.

    Music transcends digital boundaries and makes it way to traditional means

    Television is no more concerned solely with traditional shows but is an equally attractive medium for digital first properties as they become rating drivers for channels. New initiatives are being undertaken to release content across different mediums by tapping into relatable pop culture. The success of ‘Jammin’ a music property (simulcast on TV, digital and radio) where YouTube stars meet top Bollywood composers, which opened to great numbers on Sony TV in addition to it’s success on and VIU and BigFMreinforces that appealing content can transcend boundaries.

    The growth of vernacular content

    The next 100 million Indian viewers that are going to be binging on digital content will be users alien to the English language and their consumption of content would be in regional languages, ushering an unprecendented demand for vernacular content as has been demonstrated by the OTTs. A scalable and sustainable example here is The Yaari franchise on Viu is broadcasted in multiple languages like Telugu, Kannada and Marathi and it continues to be an engaging show across multiple states and the diaspora abroad.

    Time to change the measure of digital content

    The OTTs and digital platforms are  split between free and doing originals (e.g. YT originals, Sony Liv), to freemiums (Hotstar, Viu, Zee5), to 100 per cent subscription platforms (Netflix,Amazon prime etc). Hence it’s essential to compare them on parity and not just on a single metric.

    Originals are defining the content approach in the Indian context and if the aim is to increase downloads and viewer engagement then the metric needs to change from downloads or MAU (monthly active users) to DAU (daily active users). The quality of the content and platform desirability cannot  be measured on the basis of a new monthly release, but it must be evaluated through the DAU/MAU metric to factor in returning users. This should be the true measure for content engagement as it will streamline comparisons between subscription OTTs vs free OTT vs freemiums.

    Rise of gaming as a marketing platform

    Costs of launching a car with AR/VR experience may be too high and unreasonable, but for gamers who already spend profusely on gaming zones and digital games, a small premium will not deter them from availing an enhanced gaming experience. Already a high engagement platform, gaming is eating into time spent by Indians on prime-time television as maximum gamers were found to play the most between 7 pm to midnight. The average daily time spent by Indians on mobile games has crossed the one-hour mark, which is more than the 45 minutes that they spend on streaming platforms.

    In 2018, over 380 million people are now watching other people playing games online making it a gaming revolution in the digital content space.

    Brand embracing and creating sustainable platforms

    As the race for eyeballs & viewer stickiness hots up, so does the pressue on creating new and appealing content leading to heavy investements for the platforms and networks. The old space of branded content has taken a new shape now with platforms and networks looking at this as content first. Annual brand funded or sponsorships have matured into prospective longer term partnerships like LUX Golden Rose Awards, Mc Dowell’s No.1 Yaari and  Yaari  JAM , Red Label 6-Pack Band 2.0.

    A strategic transformation has led to content becoming larger and (though marginally), joint initiatives becoming longer and content becoming synonymous with the brand. Brands are embracing platforms to leverage content strategically (long term and scalable year on year) and as broadcasters reward and demand for content, the number of these partnerships is sure to grow as it transforms into a sustainable model.

    (The author is head, content+, Mindshare. The views expressed here are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them)

  • Events – the ultimate tool for marketers to reach their audience

    Events – the ultimate tool for marketers to reach their audience

    MUMBAI: Events are an effective and economical way for companies to interact directly with their target audience. It is the interactive and personal nature of this medium that exerts a much more noticeable effect on target audiences at an individual level. As an example, a person is far more likely to remember a cricket game he went for where McDonald's happened to be a title sponsor, as opposed to a ten-second advertisement for McDonald's that he saw on YouTube; which he’d probably try and skip anyway. Noticing the raw power of events as a platform to engage with one’s audience, marketers have wisely opted to seriously consider them as the viable tool they are.

    Perhaps two of the biggest reasons for the current interest in events as a marketing tool are the decline in traditional media viewership and the oversaturation of social media platforms with brand messaging. Events in a sense, serve as an easy way for brand managers to enable their communication to break free of the clutter that plagues most other forms of marketing. Here are some of the reasons why marketers choose events as a central component of their integrated marketing strategy:

    Memorability

    Large-scale events are inherently interesting. As a result, they act as magnets for (free) mainstream press coverage and public interest, especially when compared to social media or advertising campaigns, in which excitement is generally restricted to the industry itself. For example, the recent Bryan Adams concert in Mumbai will be remembered and talked about by attendees for years, if not decades to come, but few if any could recall the latest ad campaign by OLX. When a company attaches itself to an event, be it as grand as the IPL, majestic as Beauty and the Beast, or out-of-the-box as the Pro Kabaddi League, it essentially rides on the goodwill and connection that people have to those individual properties.

    Customisability

    Events, just like any other platform of communication, can be customised to match the exact requirements, expectations, and desires of the target audience while simultaneously accommodating the brand’s messaging. For example, MSI, Alienware, and Intel, all regularly organise or associate with gaming tournaments because these types of events attract their target audience; young men who enjoy video games. This rationale holds true for brands across various sectors for as long as a brand is able to craft an experience (or at least tie-up with a property that can that is irresistible to their specific audience.

    Return on investment

    While events do have a comparatively higher cost per view (CPV) from the perspective of a brand when compared to an advertising campaign, the return on investment remains exceptionally competitive given their high recall value. One of the core objectives of marketing is customer engagement, and few if any channels of communication have the ability to generate a profound response from the audience quite like an event. For example, if DC were to set up a kiosk at Comicon, the response they would receive from attendees would be far more interactive than it would be if they spent the very same portion of the marketing budget on a billboard. For this reason, the ROI on event sponsorships should not be discounted.

    Distribution of risks

    Unlike advertisements which can only have a single sponsor, events, typically large ones like sports leagues, film award ceremonies, and music concerts, can have multiple stakeholders. This distributes the costs and allows all parties to benefit from their association with the aforementioned properties. As an example, in the case of an event like the IPL, no single company could ever hope to afford to sponsor the entire tournament. This is why each team has their own set of sponsors, as does the event itself.

    The marketing landscape in India is evolving continuously as brands escape the clutches of conservatism and explore new avenues of reaching consumers. This renaissance has resulted in an equally massive evolution in the quality, quantity, and types of events that are now emerging across India. It would be safe to say that synergy of both industries is guaranteed to produces some absolute masterpieces in the near future.    

    The author is managing director, Dome Entertainment Pvt Ltd. The views expressed here are his own and Indiantelevision.com may not subscribe to them.

  • Movie premieres, HD adoption, OTT challenge for English entertainment, movies in 2018

    Movie premieres, HD adoption, OTT challenge for English entertainment, movies in 2018

    MUMBAI:  It was a good year for English entertainment and movies channels. 2018 saw some big Hollywood premieres even as channels went the route of content segmentation and HD adoption.

    Leaving behind the concerns of GST and demonetisation, the industry did much better this year. Industry experts suggest that a small correction expected in the content acquisition cost in 2019. This will come on account of two things – revenue growth across years in the genre and the evolution of business models as some broadcasters are sharing their first output windows with SVOD players.

    Times Network EVP & head-entertainment cluster Vivek Srivastava said, “We had a strong festive season and are now set for an aggressive Q4 to end the year. We have driven premiums, sponsorships and managed to deliver great value to our advertisers. The highlight for us would be the success of MNX. With it, we now have two brands in top 4 (Movies Now and MNX) and that’s a healthy space to be in. We command more than one third of the total English entertainment viewership and are poised to drive our fair share from the market.”

    Two of its channels out of the four are in the top 5 list of BARC ratings week 49. Movies Now led the chart with 2769 impressions ‘000 and MNX was at the third position with 2213 impressions ‘000.

    Times Network’s newest brand MNX has been dangling above HBO in six metro markets. The group has close to 1500 titles and 25-30 shows for its movie channels. The content comes from four major production houses Disney, MGM, NBC and Warner Bros which are long term deals. The network holds the second output of NBC after SPN India.

    Sony Pictures Network India’s (SPNI) English cluster grew by 34 per cent in FY19 (17 per cent till date) as compared to FY18 (13 per cent). The legacy brand AXN, in 2018, emerged as the leader in all India 15+ market with 25 per cent market share according to the broadcaster. The channel introduced two new properties in 2018- AXN Premiere Club and AXN Bestsellers.

    In 2018, Sony Pix witnessed some big Indian television premieres like Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom, Mortal Engines, First Man, Skyscraper. SPNI business head English cluster Tushar Shah said, “We believe that content will continue to be the driving force. We at SPN offer best-in-class entertainment to viewers across all our platforms. Our programming and marketing initiatives are driven by clear consumer insight and deep market research. We are extremely happy with our content performance and are bullish about a bright future.” The English cluster of SPN picks up content from Disney, Warner Bros, NBC Universal, Lionsgate and PVR Pictures.

    The English movies genre is a tough nut to crack with many players vying for a small viewership pie. But that didn’t deter Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) from launching a new channel to wow viewers. On 3 June, &flix was launched under its separate ‘&’ brand identity. The channel claimed that it was meant for those who are in search of new experiences and wanting to take quantum leaps. This also saw the shutdown of Zee Studio, an 18-year-old brand.

    Zeel’s English cluster brings content from a large library of exclusive titles sourced from many independent Hollywood players and studios such as Paramount, PVR, Sony and Disney.

    This year also saw &Prive HD cement its base in the market. The channel had upped its list of top rated movies to show during primetime. In early 2018, it had 450 titles to boast of, just a few months after launch, from names like Paramount, Reliance, Tanvir and PVR. &Prive HD is taking the non-conformist route, just like its target audience of 22-50, by even picking up films from independent producers in Europe.

    Launching an exclusively HD channel and that too for the crème-de-la-crème of Indian viewers was a risk. High net worth homes are the target of &Prive HD but this is also the segment that can afford many other quicker options like OTT.

    Turner India, which holds two channels HBO and WB also had a list of premieres to enthral viewers including Dunkirk, Wonder Woman, The Lego Batman movie, Annabelle 2, Transformers: The Last Knight, Baywatch, Justice League, Kong: Skull Island etc. In the start of the year, the network had its aim as engaging its fans deeper with personal communication through mediums that they are comfortable with such as WhatsApp.

    According to the KPMG in India’s M&E report 2018, the English GEC genre saw an 8.5 per cent growth in advertising expenditure from 1.7 per cent in FY17 to 1.8 per cent in FY18, despite pressure on relative positioning in English viewership on account of the change in the measurement methodology. English Movies genre also witnessed an increase of 3.33 per cent in FY18 compared to FY17.

    “2019 is expected to start on a good note with Q4 carrying forward the positivity and excitement of the festive season. The fact that we have some of our biggest properties – ‘100 Mania’ on Movies Now and ‘Kings of Hollywood’ on MNX only strengthens the proposition. Also with the elections coming up in 2019 and the economy going strong, we are likely to have a strong exit to this financial year,” Srivastava added.

    Times Network estimated that the genre grew by 15-20 per cent more than the previous year’s figure which was Rs 700 crore.

    There was an increase in the uptake of HD channels with 10-12 million subscribers availing HD services at the end of FY18. This number is likely to have gone up by the end of the calendar year 2018. The DTH players have been the front-runners in up-selling HD services to their customers with MSOs only managing to garner about 1-1.5 million HD subscribers. On an average, an HD subscriber results in a 1.5-1.7x ARPU as compared to SD subscribers.

    Another challenge that these genres will have to face in the coming years will be that of the growing presence of OTT. With data cost coming down and access to content widening (over 30 OTT players already), viewers could be tempted to skip the remote in favour of their cell phones whenever they wish to watch an English show or movie. What still works in favour of TV is its picture consistency, which gets hampered on OTT due to unstable data, and the screen size. For now, it also looks like OTT players, including ones from SPNI and ZEEL, are more focused on creating new content rather than depend on seen ones to grow viewership.