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Tag: AVIA

  • Prime time for India as Amazon’s streamer doubles down on desi drama

    Prime time for India as Amazon’s streamer doubles down on desi drama

    MUMBAI: At a lively fireside chat during AVIA’s Future of Video India conference, part of the first-ever WAVES summit, Kelly Day, head of international & VP, Prime Video, and Gaurav Gandhi, VP for Asia Pacific & MENA, lifted the curtain on Amazon’s streaming strategy with India in a starring role.

    Kelly Day waxed lyrical about the enduring allure of the big screen, declaring, “We believe in the theatrical window,” and reaffirming Prime Video’s intent to back the box office while keeping its streaming chops strong. The aim? Around 14–15 global theatrical releases a year, because nothing beats the magic of popcorn-fuelled premieres unless you can also watch it at home in your PJs.

    But beyond the cinema, it’s the everything hub approach that’s taking centre stage. “We want to be the first place people think of when they want to watch something,” said Day, noting that with over 200 million Prime members worldwide, Prime Video is less about being everything to everyone and more about helping everyone find exactly what they want.

    For India, that means layering choice upon choice. Gaurav Gandhi detailed how the country has become Prime’s petri dish for innovation TVOD (Transactional Video on Demand) is booming with 7000 plus titles, and 60 per cent get rented every month across 95 per cent of India’s pin codes. The subcontinent is also home to 25 plus channel partners, making it second only to Japan in Prime’s global “channels” play.

    “India is a super important locale,” Gandhi noted, adding that it’s not just a growth engine for Prime sign-ups but also a massive content factory, with one of the largest original slates outside the US. Even more impressive? One in four views of Indian content comes from overseas, proving that regional stories are finding global legs.

    And when it comes to customisation, India’s Prime menu is a buffet: from Prime Lite to full-fat Prime, mobile-only editions to programming in 10 Indian languages, the streamer’s playbook here is all about slicing and dicing its offerings to match the country’s many moods. “We’re learning from India and taking that learning global,” Gandhi quipped.

    So while other platforms try to decode the Indian market, Prime Video seems to have cracked the subtitles and is quietly exporting the script.
     

  • Avia’s inaugural ‘Japan in View’ highlights Japan’s future of digital entertainment

    Avia’s inaugural ‘Japan in View’ highlights Japan’s future of digital entertainment

    Tokyo – The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) held its very first Japan focused industry event, Japan in View, on 29 October at the Andaz Tokyo, bringing together over 130 international and regional players from across the video and streaming industry.

    The conference opened and dove straight into the streaming potential of Japan, with TVer Inc., executive managing director & COO Shinjiro Ninagawa, sharing his ambitions of growing TVer to thrice as large as it was now, with the business doubling over the next two – three years. Dazn CEO (Japan, Asia) Yu Sasamoto, also said that Japan was still at the tipping point of the shift and transformation from traditional linear programming to digital services, and he expected more disruption from new players, with the landscape shifting significantly in the next five years.

    Ampd Analytics (an MPA company) VP, Sam Yousif further expanded on the opportunities for Japan, opening his session describing Japan as “a lucrative, consistently growing multi-billion-dollar industry with a complex competitive landscape and unique customer behaviour.” In Asia (excluding China), Japan was the largest Video On Demand (VOD) market in terms of revenue with $ 6 billion in 2024, almost two times bigger than the next biggest market, Australia. Revenue had also been growing near double digits every year in the past four years, with a Cagr of 17 per cent from 2020 – 2024. VOD consumers also had diverse options, both within and outside of the industry, with VOD only representing six per cent of their free time. Japanese consumers also exhibited unique viewing behaviour not seen across other markets, including a distinct preference for local content. 78 per cent of the total hours viewed on VOD in Japan was with Japanese content, with 93 per cent of VOD users consuming Japanese content and US content only at 16 per cent. And interestingly, there was also a large, shared economy where the top titles, mostly anime, were shared across all the platforms. “With so much content shared across so many platforms, it feels more like a streaming cooperation in Japan than a streaming war,” added Avia CEO Louis Boswell.

    However, beyond anime, panelists believed that Japan was only scratching the surface in terms of the international opportunity for the export of its content. “If the industry can turn and create content that can be appealing both for Japanese audiences and globally, it’s enormous value and enormous opportunity,” said Iconique Pictures executive producer David Shin.What was key was to take the wonderful stories that were indigenous to Japan and elevate them with a high level of storytelling that could propel the industry and that content overseas, added Shin.

    And with the success that Korean content has had internationally, Tving chief content officer Sun Hong Min shared that the foremost reason behind TVING’s impressive growth this year was their strategic partnership with leading content providers, that enabled them to offer a diverse arrangement of high-quality premium content that resonated deeply with their users. Min was also of the opinion that local content could resonate on a global scale by combining universal human elements with a narrative deeply rooted in local history, culture and sentiment.

    Partnerships were also key to growing the business for Warner Bros. Discovery general manager – Japan, Buddy Marini across both linear and streaming, having recently announced a new partnership with U-Next to launch Max in Japan. For local giant J:Com, general manager, media business division, Kaz Sasajima, the digital domain too represented room for growth, particularly in the space of professionally produced content. And wrapping up in the closing panel, for TV5Monde, managing director, APAC, Alexandre Muller, AI was presenting new possibilities, notably in terms of providing greater access to content across multiple languages. “Definitely the place to be is in Asia Pacific, and this is really where the growth is and I can see growth both in linear and as well as on OTT,” added Muller.

  • AVIA and KOCCA announce partnership in Korea in View

    AVIA and KOCCA announce partnership in Korea in View

    Mumbai – The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) and the Korean Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on AVIA’s upcoming Korea in View conference.

    Taking place in Seoul on 29 August, Korea in View will now be integrated into BCWW, the annual global broadcasting content convention organized by KOCCA. BCWW will run from 27 to 29 August at COEX, Seoul. Under this partnership, KOCCA will support AVIA in the planning and promotion of Korea in View, while AVIA will do likewise for other sessions within the main BCWW conference program.

    Building on the success of the inaugural Korea in View conference in 2022, this year’s event will explore the latest developments in the Korean video industry and its implications for the wider Asian video eco-system. Streaming dynamics, global ambitions and co-production models will be discussed in light of rising production costs impacting the industry at large. Attendees will also gain insights into the Korean formula behind its global success and the opportunities in premium video and Connected TV advertising.

    As part of BCWW, Korea in View will offer complimentary access to all delegates, providing a unique opportunity for industry professionals from Korea and abroad.

    AVIA CEO Louis Boswell conveyed his enthusiasm for participating in BCWW, a prominent content convention in Asia that attracts thousands of delegates. He stated, “We are honoured to announce the collaboration between AVIA and KOCCA for the upcoming Korea in View conference. AVIA’s market-in-view conferences aim to explore key Asian markets, educating the industry on their unique dynamics and their strategies for success. This partnership will expand the event’s reach and influence, enabling us to delve into the dynamic realm of the Korean creative and content industry and its impact on the global stage.”

  • Avia’s Satellite Industry Forum demystifies trends and the future

    Avia’s Satellite Industry Forum demystifies trends and the future

    Mumbai: Industry lobby group the Asian Video Industry Association’s (Avia’s) Satellite Industry Forum held in Singapore took a deep dive into the world of satellites for video, data and mobility with executives from Asia and overseas voicing their opinions around current trends and the future on 28 May.

    The consensus was that while the market for the satellite ecosystem has been tough with some launch failures, hard macroeconomic forces, and caution amongst financiers and insurers about this segment, there is optimism on the horizon.

    The bright star on the horizon has been the success of Elon Musk-owned Space Link’s direct-to-consumer StarLink low earth orbit (Leo) or non-geosynchronous orbit (NGSO) constellation which has notched up $1.4 billion in revenues by signing up millions of users. This, and Amazon’s Project Kuiper, led to a frenzy of consolidation amongst the geosynchronous orbit (GSOs) players, following questioning by financiers and board members on what play they have in the multi-orbital business.

    Intelsat acquired Go-Go and followed up with an announcement that it itself was being acquired by big boy SES for a cash consideration of $3.1 billion. The marriage would create a giant with over 120 satellites in both the MEO and GEO legs of the business. Viasat meanwhile merged with Inmarsat, while Eutelsat fused with OneWeb.

    Speakers expected the wave of digestion and consolidation of the industry to continue, and possibly intensify, even as players such as Rivada Space Networks, promising the outernet through Leos get ready to provide their services. Also, HummingSat, which is Swiss company SWISSto12 small GEO satellite has thrown its hat into the ring.  Speakers at SIF  opined that video will continue to be delivered increasingly via IP, thanks to streaming services, through fibre, terrestrially as well as through high throughput satellites.

    SIF featured speakers such as Thaicom CEO Patompob (Nile) Suwansiri, ABS CEO Mark Rigolle, Asiasat chief commercial officer Raymond Chow, Measat Satellite Systems COO  Yau Chyong Lim, Sky Perfect Jsat GM Asia regional headquarters &  Singapore branch regional director  Kenichi Shimotsuma, Milbank partner Dara Panahy, Global Satellite Operators Association VP policy & regulatory Peng Zhao, Amazon Web Services head of global satcom (A&S), APT Satellite EVP  Huang Baozhong, Encompass VP, engineering & operations Mark Wardle, Lynk Global VP, Asia Pacific James Alderdice, Northern Telecom CTIO  Mahdi Nazari Mehrabi,  Wireless Nation operations adviser  Martin Arias,  GapSat CEO Gregg Daffner, Hughes Network Systems India president Pranav Roach, Curvalux & Saturn executive chairman Thomas Choi, Gilat Satellite VP regional sales  Yossi Gal, VP Regional Sales, Hughes VP International Operations Kartik Sheshadri,  Integrasys CEO Alvaro Sanchez, ST Engineering iDirect VP market development & strategy  Jo De Loor, Acesat Satellite VP business development & engineering Adrian Potter, Baker & McKenzie Wong & Leow principal Ken Chia, Bird & Bird partner  Thomas Jones, Partner,  Marsh Speciality managing director Stephen Monks Office for Space Technology & Industry, Singapore (OSTIn) deputy director  Jacinth Lau, Comsys partner Jeremy Rose,  Arianespace Asia Pacific managing director Vivian Quenet,  Boeing Satellite Systems VP business development Joe Bogosian, Space Machines chief commercial officer  Mark Ramsey,  HummingSat, SWISSto12 CTO Michael Kaliski, SpaceIntelReport co-founder & chief editor  Peter de Selding, Eutelsat OneWeb regional VP-APAC  Neha Idnani,  Kacific Broadband Satellites Group EVP corporate development Jacques-Samuel Prolon, Planetcast CEO Sanjay Duda,  Rivada Space VP of sales APAC Donald Chew, Rivers Advisers CEO Katherine Gizinski &  chief consulting officer Alexis Martin and  Avia CEO Louis Boswell.

  • Asia Video Summit returns next month with a focus on growth and sustainability

    Asia Video Summit returns next month with a focus on growth and sustainability

    MUMBAI: The annual marquee event of the Asian video industry, the Asia Video Summit will return as a full hybrid event this year on 1-2 November. There will be physical events in both Hong Kong and Singapore, as well as a live stream of all sessions to be made available on its interactive event platform.

    The Asia Video Summit is organised by Asia Video Industry Association (Avia) with Create Hong Kong of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as the lead sponsor. The aim of the Asia Video Summit is to tell a holistic story of the state of the video industry, looking at all aspects of it and articulated by its decision makers, to provide its delegates with a comprehensive view of the state of the video industry today.

    In the post-COVID-19 era, media and entertainment companies have been the darlings of Wall Street. This narrative has recently changed, however, and arguably irrational exuberance has given way to irrational pessimism. But is the streaming business model fundamentally flawed, or is this just a recalibration in an era of inflation and post-pandemic trauma? How do the trajectories of investment vs monetization balance each other? And where does Asia sit compared to other parts of the world? Do subscriber numbers foretell a golden period of growth in Asia that can counter negative narratives from the West?

    At this year’s Summit, they will be speaking to the people who are determining the future of the video industry in Asia. Besides the state and future of the video industry, they will also explore the growing role and advance of advertising, the technology behind the customer experience, a detailed look at the role of news and sports today and the burning topic of environmental sustainability.

    Some of the key speakers of the Summit include:

    -A+E Networks managing director Asia Saugato Banerjee 

    – StarHub chief of consumer business group Johan Buse 

    – True Corporation deputy director, planning & business development, strategic content group Kirana Chew

    – Media Partners Asia executive director Vivek Couto

    – Warner Bros. Discovery president & managing director Western Pacific James Gibbons

    – BBC Studios senior vice president & general manager Asia Phil Hardman

    – Astro vice president, head of sports Nicholas John

    – Zee5 chief business officer Manish Kalra

    – beIN Asia Pacific managing director Asia Mike Kerr

    – Disney Streaming head of product – developing markets Sidd Mantri

    – Airtel Ads CEO Vignesh Narayanan

    – Mediacorp chief commercial officer, chief digital officer Parminder Singh

    – TVING CEO Jay Yang

    – Media Prima Television Networks deputy CEO Nini Yusof

    The Asia Video Summit is sponsored by Gold Sponsors Brightcove, BytePlus, INVIDI, PubMatic, Tencent Cloud, TV5Monde, Silver Sponsors AsiaSat, Broadpeak, Dolby, Edgio, Google, Gracenote, InvestHK, Irdeto, Magnite, Measat, Mirada, Nagra, SES, Synamedia. Create Hong Kong of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as the lead sponsor supports the Community Outreach Programme that provides complimentary passes for local video and creative industries-related SMEs and tertiary students to participate in the virtual Summit. Complimentary in-person Mentoring Workshops will also be held on 10 November to provide tips about the media industry.

  • Avia concludes OTT Summit, gives hope for growth in Asia

    Avia concludes OTT Summit, gives hope for growth in Asia

    Mumbai: Asia Video Industry Association’s (Avia) latest OTT summit has come to an end with much optimism for growth in Asia and a strong focus on content and the consumer.

    To make this event a success, Avia hosted over 850 delegates and featured over 80 industry leaders at the OTT summit this year. The panelists were involved in conversations around the subject of growth, from subscriber and revenue growth to increased local content investment and an intense focus on the customer. The adage ‘Content is King’ was very much heard throughout the summit.

    Media Partners Asia co-founder and executive director Vivek Couto indicated that there’s a lot of room for growth in the OTT space. “With most markets having an SVOD household penetration of less than 50 per cent, there was certainly an upside for Southeast Asia and some parts of North Asia as well,” he highlighted.

    He added, “While the region remained bullish on growth, the average revenue per user remained low, particularly in the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, and India. As such, some tiers and price increases would be introduced along the way, especially when the premium sport started to be added to the platforms,”

    In MPA’s review of share of first-title consumption, premium local content was a key driver for customer acquisition, particularly in Indonesia and Thailand, with local content that showed some travelability, and as expected, Korean content traveling very well, and some Japanese content as well.

    This focus on content continued through to the fireside chat with Paramount Global SVP, head of office and streaming for Asia Catherine Park. She reiterated that their “mission is to unleash the power of the content with the belief that content is king.”

    “With different go-to-market strategies to unlock maximum value, Paramount Plus planned to launch first in Korea with CJ ENM, then Japan as the next market followed by Southeast Asia in 2023. Park also shared Paramount’s ‘glocal’ strategy – to have global vision but with local execution,” she noted.

    The importance of being local was also echoed by many panelists, as Asia could not be seen as one homogenous market. Discover Inc business development associate director Sagar Pandit feels that “when you gun for growth, especially in Asia, it’s about tailoring your approach for every region but keeping your consumer at the front and centre of whatever you are doing. And with increasing fragmentation in Asia, customer obsession became a key part of the strategy, as more platforms leveraged technology to deliver personalised experiences.”

    Taking the conversation ahead, Mediacorp chief commercial and digital officer Parminder Singh explained the three things a customer looked at. He said, “Customers look for highly personalised and relevant content, and new virtual interactive experiences, all built into one single experience, with the use of technology that would allow you to bring all of this to the customer.”

    “If you are only delivering a straightforward service, you are going to be left behind,” asserted Disney+Hostar head of technology, Akash Saxena.

    However, the challenge to integrate it all into an operator’s platform for a seamless experience very much remained, calling for perhaps greater aggregation and bundling for the OTT industry, as we started to see some fatigue from consumers working with multiple services to meet their content needs.

    Closing off the summit with bold predictions for the future of streaming Viacom 18 digital ventures COO Gourav Rakshit remained very optimistic, sharing that a large bet that platforms had not fully capitalised on was the area of media becoming social, with the opportunity to build communities. “We’ve really made rapid strides in the last five years, the next five will be focusing a lot more on delivering consumer delight,” Rakshit remarked.

    The summit was supported by Gold Sponsors Brightcove, Lumen Technologies, Synamedia, TV5MONDE, Xandr and Silver Sponsors Akamai, Amagi, Broadpeak, BytePlus, Discovery, Encoding.com, Endeavor Streaming, Irdeto, Magnite, Mediacorp, Mirada, NAGRA, Nielsen, PubMatic and Vindicia.

  • AVIA appoints Matthew Cheetham as GM of Coalition Against Piracy

    AVIA appoints Matthew Cheetham as GM of Coalition Against Piracy

    Mumbai: The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) has appointed Matthew Cheetham as general manager of the Coalition Against Piracy (CAP), with immediate effect.

    In his new role, Cheetham will take over from Aaron Herps and build on the accomplishments achieved by CAP to date, with the aim of creating a stronger and healthier environment in which the video industry can prosper, said the statement.

    Over the last four years, CAP has made real inroads into the systemic problems of video piracy faced by the broadcast and streaming video industry in the Asia Pacific (APAC). “CAP is critically important to AVIA and the industry as a whole and I am delighted that in Matt we have such a seasoned and experienced executive taking over,” said AVIA CEO Louis Boswell. “Matt will bring his own ideas and energy to the role and I am confident CAP and the industry’s anti-piracy efforts will grow in strength under him.”

    Cheetham is a qualified lawyer specialising in intellectual property, more specifically copyright protection, with over 20 years of experience working in APAC for some of the largest content producers in the world. Prior to taking up his role at CAP, he was the Premier League’s head of business affairs, APAC. In this role, Cheetham opened and headed up the Premier League’s APAC office in Singapore, the Premier League’s first office outside the UK, and oversaw all enforcement, policy and outreach efforts for the Premier League in APAC.

    Prior to working for the Premier League, Cheetham spent ten years as the Motion Picture Association’s (MPA) regional legal counsel and assistant policy officer for APAC following which he was the managing director of the MPA’s New Zealand office, the New Zealand Screen Association (NZSA) that oversaw all enforcement, policy and outreach efforts for MPA member companies in New Zealand.  

  • Satellite remains an essential element of video distribution: AVIA

    Satellite remains an essential element of video distribution: AVIA

    Mumbai: The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) hosted its annual satellite industry forum on 18 November as a virtual conference.

    The forum opened with a look at satellite trends and forecasts post-Covid with Quilty Analytics senior analyst Caleb Henry. The traditional satcom industry continues to be in a state of rapid change, and still in a state of turmoil. While the industry is currently dominated by a handful of major players, this could also change dramatically over the next five years as new technologies and standards reset the competitive landscape. And despite the impact of Covid-19, there has been no let-up of interest in investment into the space industry with $5.5 billion in collective proceeds from all 13 space SPACs.

    AVIA was also privileged to host Stephen Spengler for his final keynote before he steps down as CEO of Intelsat. Spengler had spoken at the satellite industry forum for his first keynote as CEO in 2015, hence it was fitting the forum was his final address as well.

    While the industry continues to innovate and push the boundaries of what is possible, it has yet to reach its full potential in fulfilling its essential role in the global telecommunications landscape. With digital video making up 70 per cent of internet traffic, satellite remains the essential and enabling technology, with the ubiquity, reach, and economics to serve the networks.

    Spengler’s outlook on industry trends for Asia remains positive, with linear and pay-TV distribution still a driving application for the Asia Pacific region, with a growth rate of 2.5 per cent per year. Spengler was also excited about 5G being a huge enabler and game-changer. With satellite fully integrated into the 5G world, it will make solutions and services more seamless, interconnected, and economical.

    Wrapping up his keynote address, Spengler shared Intelsat’s mission to unify the global telecoms ecosystem of the future. The vision requires all satellite and terrestrial technologies, networks and providers, and solutions and services to be unified as one global ecosystem. “If we focus on our customers, the people who benefit from a more connected world, that is success for the next year and beyond,” said Spengler.

    Asia Pacific’s leading satellite operators also shared similar positive sentiments despite the move from broadcast to streaming. MEASAT COO Yau Chyong believes that satellite will still be the main platform to deliver video services nationwide in Malaysia, and it is the platforms themselves who are transforming their services to include streaming. Hence broadcast and streaming will complement each other, with linear still having a role to play, and streaming alongside it. Similarly in Australia, despite a plethora of streaming services available, Optus head of satellite and space systems Nick Leake still sees the same requirements for satellite to go out for at least another ten years. The greatest issue for Asia Pacific remains one of scale, in order to provide reliable networks to serve the customers, added AsiaSat CEO Roger Tong. Tong believes that moving forward, creating more partnerships between competing satellite operators is important, especially when regulatory restrictions on consolidation remains a key challenge in the region.

    Bharti Enterprises founder and chairman and OneWeb executive chairman Sunil Bharti Mittal also joined the forum this year for a keynote conversation on the space business in India. With the holy grail of low latency, high speed, and sufficient capacity resolved by NGSOs, it has become a solution that works for the new world and into the future. 5G, too, is seen as a game-changing technology for Mittal, with its extremely low latency a boom for industry applications. However, Mittal also noted that while NGSOs will have an important role to play in the 5G ecosystem, it will only be at the periphery of supporting 5G ambitions. Mittal also shared OneWeb’s vision to connect all areas of the world, from oceans to aviation. “In 5 years’ time. . . there should not be anybody in the world that is not connected,” said Mittal.

    The satellite industry forum is generously sponsored by AsiaSat, Eutelsat, Hughes, Intelsat, Marsh and Maxar.

  • Akamai Tech & AVIA partner for Asia Pacific Media Summit

    MUMBAI: Where do you get 20 of the brightest minds in the media and gaming industry under one umbrella? Well, come 23 Jun 2021, they will be converging at the second virtual APAC Media Summit, which global cloud technology and security leader, Akamai Technologies, is producing in association with the Asian Video Industry Association (AVIA). 

    “It’s an event that both Akamai and Industry leaders look up to ever since we started in 2019. We had a phenomenal debut when we kicked it off in Mumbai, and we are happy that the journey did not stop because of the pandemic,” said Akamai India, Solutions engineering lead, Deepa Parikh. “2021 is going to be an interesting year. The pandemic has led to increase in digital adoption and increase in digital transformation, across industry sectors and especially in media. In that context, this APAC summit gains significance because the region has so much in common in terms of the operating environment, learnings and outlook.”

    The event will include a keynote conversation around content and monetization strategies and the future of streaming and an overview of the APAC media and gaming industry which has been growing by leaps and bounds. It will also focus on the innovations and tools that could help media houses and esports organizations to secure and protect their content and connect with key players.

    Registered users will get a chance to hear the experiences of industry leaders such as Disney+ Hotstar, president & head, Sunil Rayan; Seven West Media, Technology director, Scott Favelle; Rooter, founder and CEO, Piyush Kumar ; Kayo Sports & Binge, CEO, Julian Ogrin; IQyi, head of international business development, Anna Pak Burdin; Viettel Media, CEO, Vo Thanh Hai; Viacom18 Digital Ventures, COO, Gourav Rakshit; Akamai Technologies, vice president sales, and MD APJ, Parimal Pandya; Sky TV New Zealand, head of information and media security, Steve Lang; Akamai Technologies, APAC marketing director, Sheng Thong Hsin; Akamai Technologies, Regional VP sales APJ, Sid Pisharoti; Mobile Premier League, senior vice-president, strategy and operations, Naman Jhawar and Picture Board Partners, founder, Unmish Parthasarathi among many others. 

    Some of the key issues that are to be discussed during the summit include 

    • The future of video and its impact on business strategies 

    • Securing your content and customers – How is the ecosystem adapting together?

    • Protecting your video consumption journey – Is your bottom line protected? 

    • Creating esports experiences during Covid and beyond – What are some of the recent/popular moats in enhancing gaming experiences whilst staying protected?

    The Indian media houses have been going through a digital transformation for a long time now and Akamai has been a long-term partner to many of them in India, right from being their technical infrastructure partner to being a trusted advisor helping them accelerate this evolution online and through their digital transformation journey. 

    Through this event, both Akamai and AVIA hope to highlight how some of the new trends in the video industry will play out over the coming year in the Asia Pacific region and how media organisations can position themselves for greater success in the new normal.

    “Over the last year, the pandemic gave another push to help these media houses further this digital transition. It has forced media houses to diversify, to pivot to new revenue streams and to secure their content and data. In addition, Akamai has also enabled Media houses to transition seamlessly to working remotely,” said Parikh adding that a lot of these digital media houses have been innovating their new revenue models and moving towards more subscription-based services and having new products bundled in.

    “They are not just relying on ad revenue but exploring other newer formats like podcasts, video reportage, webinars, and Artificial Reality/Virtual reality to enrich their information delivery. Another key trend has been growing vernacular language content consumption both digital print and video largely due to the growing mobile user base,” added Parikh, discussing some of the new trends that have shaped the industry over the last decade.

    This digital transformation has also been accompanied by the rapid growth of streaming video services, especially over the last six years. . According to a report by Media Partners Asia (MPA), the Asia Pacific online video industry grew revenue by 14 per cent to reach $30.5 billion in 2020, mainly due to the lockdown which scaled the adoption of online services. Total online video revenues are projected to reach $54.5 billion by 2025.

    With the rise in engagement during the pandemic, a lot of new data was generated by publishers, OTT providers, and social media platforms, which faced emerging issues around privacy, content scraping, and large-scale cyberattacks.

    “Content lies at the heart of any digital media platform. In today’s digital age, cyber-threats are common and happening in all different forms all across the globe. The most common form of attack on corporate enterprise networks is phishing and the presence of malware. The third layer that needs protection is the End-user data, which can come under threat of credential stuffing attacks and account takeovers. We, at Akamai, feel that digital publishers need to adopt a multi-layered approach and rely on a zero-trust framework to protect themselves from various cybersecurity attacks, ransomware, phishing, advanced persistent threats, identity frauds, web skimming and content encryption to keep them away from content piracy,” added Parikh.

    Some of these issues and topics will also take centre stage at the upcoming event. To know more about how these and other challenges can be addressed by Media companies, interested participants can register at https://www.tickettailor.com/events/mediasummitapac/524244/r/indianongamingnc

    “The attendees can really benefit from the collective insights of industry veterans, analysts, and thought leaders from across the APAC region. We look forward to hosting the summit this year,” she added.

  • Aaron Herps appointed GM for AVIA’s Coalition Against Piracy

    KOLKATA: The Asia Video Industry Association (AVIA) has appointed Aaron Herps as the general manager of its Coalition Against Piracy (CAP), following the departure of Neil Gane who moved on to take up a position with the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment (ACE).

    Herps joined AVIA in 2019 as the operations manager for CAP, working alongside Gane on all CAP initiatives from government outreach to criminal investigations and associated enforcement actions against syndicates and streaming website operators in Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

    In his role as general manager of CAP, Herps will build on the strong legacy that he and Gane have built, maintaining the coalitions and alliances across the industry which have made CAP so effective and continuing to provide expert technical and forensic analysis of the shifting state of the piracy ecosystem to members and government officials, said the association on Monday.

    “Aaron has been instrumental to the success of CAP over the last two years so it gives me great pleasure to see him now taking over the role of General Manager. The fight against piracy never remains static but Aaron has the creativity and skills to lead our industry’s efforts as both the threat and our response to it evolve. I am looking forward to the next chapter of CAP,” said AVIA CEO Louis Boswell.

    Herps has over 15 years of content protection experience in the sports and entertainment industries across the Asia Pacific. Prior to joining AVIA, he was manager of Digital Content Protection for the Asia Pacific at beIN Media Group and was the senior manager of Global Content Protection at the Motion Picture Association of America for more than a decade.