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By Hull, Richard
it appears that we-meaning everyone who didn't spend his or her early teen years obsessed with MySpace-might just be the last generation to actually consider the differences between viewing screens. Yet it's this choice of screens-whether they be mobile, laptop, television, IM, iPod, or otherwise-that is changing the face of content right before our collective eyes.
We are at an evolutionary point in which consumers will stop thinking of these emerging screens as cutting-edge novelties and start "mindlessly" adopting them into their everyday lives. We need to know whether consumers view all these screens as simply new ways to access the same content or as truly new mediums to which the message must be molded.
With this in mind, entertainment content creators today must focus on creating content strategies that can evolve along with consumers' perceptions. This content-flexibility conundrum is one that Hollywood and her siblings are rallying to confront.
THE REVOLUTION: TELEVISED OR NOT?
Consider that, not too many years ago, it was virtually unheard of to see an A-list film actor "stooping" to television. But when Brad Pitt showed up on Friends, we knew the floodgates had opened.
These days, movie theaters are no longer more valuable entertainment experiences, but rather just different. In fact, audiences' mindsets have changed so much that most people now seem just as happy watching a DVD of a film on their television as they do watching the same film on a 40-foot multiplex screen.
Some blame this shift on a film business that churns out lower- quality movies, while others point the finger at a costly movie- going experience that requires 20 minutes to park at the mall and another 20 enduring ads ... not to mention the $7 price of a soda.
"Filmmakers still want their movies seen in theaters," says Andrew Panay, producer of the 2005 blockbuster The Wedding Crashers. "But the fact is that the first-run movie experience is migrating into the living room and beyond and, ultimately, there's not a whole lot Hollywood can do about it."
While movie and TV experiences have essentially become valued as equals in the eyes of mature viewing audiences, these viewers still consider computers, mobile phones, and iPods the less valuable options for viewing content. It doesn't mean they're not excited by the novelty or even by the convenience of these smaller screens, but they believe that viewing the same old traditional content on them is inherently less than ideal.
Today's kids, on the other hand, have no idea what's the big diff.
It doesn't work anymore to banish your teenage daughter to her bedroom in order to deny her the pleasure of her favorite TV show, because she's just as happy to watch that program on her bedroom computer (or even her cell phone) as she is on the living room television. Unlike for her parents, online or mobile delivery is- for her-not a novel way to get content; it's all she's ever known. It's these differences in perceptions among users that content owners must now carefully consider.
THINKING OUTSIDE THE DELIVERY BOX
What parents may have figured out, Hollywood has not.
Despite all the flashy headlines about digital distribution, the "revolution" is something that content creators are still trying to work out. Entertainment executives better wake up and take a strong sniff of the proverbial double latte, because building entertainment content strategies to capture eyeballs across all these old and new screens won't be easy.
"In many respects," says Sam Ades, director of brand strategies at Warner Bros. Online, "a studio's interest in the digital exploitation of its content centers around two concerns: How do I keep my content from being stolen, and how do I guarantee proper payment?"
Luckily, some technology companies have stepped up to answer some of these concerns. thePlatform's media publishing system is one such solution that tackles the management of business, policy, and rights regulations for an owner's content on different networks and devices. Companies like Comcast (which recently acquired thePlatform), Scripps, Verizon's V-Cast, and Amp'd Mobile are already working with thePlatform's solutions to manage these complex issues of delivering content to multiple platforms, especially considering that each screen effectively speaks a different "language."
Ian Blaine, cofounder of thePlatform, says, "A particularly interesting point is that the major content owners are starting to explore whether or not these new screens are cannibalizing their existing businesses." And this is a good thing, as it means that networks and studios might soon move past blaming technology hang- ups for their lethargy and toward more serious consideration of what consumers actually want.
With market research company In-Stat estimating a tenfold increase in the online video market over the next four years, the challenge of multi-screen distribution is not just about grabbing more viewers, but about getting more of those viewers' time.
TV LEADING THE CHARGE
By some accounts, it is the television networks that are leading the digital charge, for the sole reason that, to keep up with the Joneses, networks must now use the digital world to extend their "conversations" with viewers. Among notable movements in this space, CBS has launched its Innertube broadband channel, joining others such as MTV's Overdrive, Comedy Central's Motherload, and Discovery's Turbo.
A recent Forrester Research report concluded that young adults 18 to 26 are online 28% longer than Generation X's 27- to 40-year-olds and twice as long as Baby Boomers ages 51 to 61. Furthermore, young adults are more likely to tap into new online communication methods (such as instant messaging, social networking, and blogging) than to watch traditional television.
With these numbers in mind, many feel that MTV, in particular, has been an early leader in the extension of its message to multiple screens. "The majority of advertising deals I see now include not only linear TV media buys, promotions, and product placement, but also online, broadband, mobile, and VOD," says Jacques Vroom, an integrated marketing consultant who works with entertainment clients such as MTV. "If you do this right, each screen complements the other."
While the ability to reach more viewers on the smaller screens is great for advertisers, it can also be a good thing for content creators. MTV used mobile phone screens as proof of concept on its original series Sway's Hip-Hop Owner's Manual, a documentary-style show that explores rap-related lingo. "We shot a three-minute pilot and then allowed viewers with video-enabled mobile phones to view it," says Michael Scogin, senior producer of wireless for MTV Digital. "Once we saw its success, we knew we had a show worth ordering to series."
While, at best, only 3 million (out of the approximately 200 million) mobile phones in the U.S. are video-enabled, the numbers are growing. "Our immediate opportunity is to reach our audience in a different way, at a different point in their day," says MTV's Scogin, "but what may be more interesting is that other divisions within MTV have seen the show's success with a now-established fan base, and they, too, are interested in developing it for their own mediums."
MOVIE STUDIOS INCHING ALONG
In many respects, the film studios have seemingly been more interested in grabbing headlines than in doing seriously innovative digital business. Although the logistics may be very different, the studios still view the underlying notion of distributing movies digitally with the same mindset they've had since the beginning of film. It's a "create it once, sell it many times" mentality.
In addition to the obvious popularity of iTunes, studio-backed broadband outlets CinemaNow and MovieLink-both of which allow users to pay for and download a film, usually on the same day it reaches your corner video store-seem to be emerging as key product channels. Strong future competitors such as Amazon, Blockbuster, and NetFlix are also making rumblings in the wings about movie downloads. And even a few small players like BitTorrent seem to be showing up in the headlines.
But while many of these companies may turn out to be major players in digital distribution as both consumer demand and technology evolve, watching one of these downloaded films on a living room television set still currently requires nothing short of an engineering degree.
While electronic distribution of this sort must surely be part of any studio's plans, here's the longer-term problem: CinemaNow, MovieLink, iTunes, and the like simply use new technology to enable electronic sell-through or rental of the very film that you could have seen at your local theater. What the studios have yet to do is focus on these new digital mediums as, well, truly new mediums.
Eventually, one studio will figure out that a winning strategy will involve finding ways to service the rules of this new medium by creating new content-whether wholly original or derived from existing catalogs or current titles. We wouldn't put a radio show on television and expect it to draw audiences, so why are studios' digital strategies built around simply putting theatrical movies on theinternet with the same expectations?
So while their control of our favorite entertainment "brands" should make studios the most prime candidates to exploit digital, the Hollywood movie conglomerates are ultimately wasting innovative opportunities of iTunes-level proportions by sitting on the sidelines and waiting for everyone else to figure out how to create original uses of the digital medium.
Whereas TV networks already have consumer brands to maintain, movie studios don't. This frees smart studios up to use their catalog content to establish entirely new consumer brands in the digital space-the kind that don't require you to reintroduce yourself to your audience every time.
RISE OF THE BABY PRODUCERS
The immediate winner in the battle for new screens is the kid in Kansas-far removed from Hollywood-who uploads his home video onto YouTube. For him, digital is the great equalizer-that which puts him on somewhat equal footing with the traditional content-creation behemoths.
User-generated content (UGC) is the latest buzzword that has propelled the MySpaces and YouTubes to the frontpage of every newspaper in the country. And it is perhaps the first type of content truly invented by the internet, rather than just distributed by it. But while the implications for simply sharing personal content are obvious, UGC visionaries still struggle with how to make money.
Hollywood has begun to wonder as well, resulting in recent announcements such as that of NBC's marketing deal with YouTube to promote certain programs, including The Office. Other UGC sites, such as Revver, have developed alternate business models that share advertising proceeds with individual content creators.
Russell Holliman, founder and CEO of Podcast Ready, feels that it is podcasting that may hold the key to monetizing UGC. Podcasting, which refers to a method of delivery and not the content itself, enables users to download audio and video files for playback on mobile devices, including iPods, other MP3 players, and cell phones.
"We've established a podcast directory to provide anyone with a simple way of finding, managing, and sharing audio and video podcasts," says Holliman. "Our goal is to let people choose what they want and to get it where they want."
However, the Hollywood jury is still out on UGC, primarily because it falls into a gray area that's far outside the black-and- white landscape of traditional media. This dilemma has led to some interesting questions about who exactly should be crafting the networks' and studios' strategies for UGC and other original digital content initiatives.
THE CONTENT CLUB
Savvy observers have started to wonder what will happen in a year or two when the novelty of the new screens wears off and users actually want to be entertained. After all, lame content doesn't get any better just because it's on a cool two-inch screen. It's this challenge that inevitably is teaching digital players that, in order to have a seat at the table, they must begin courting proven Hollywood talent.
Unfortunately, digital executives find that you can't just pick up the phone and expect to talk to Tom Hanks's agent. If accessing experienced film and TV talent were easy, everyone would do it. It seems that, believe it or not, most studios have yet to learn that just because someone knows how to encode video doesn't mean that person's the right one to run a studio's digital content group.
"Traditional Hollywood is a business closely resembling the political world in Washington D.C., where the rules are only truly known by those on the inside, and relationships mean everything," says Brad Mendelsohn, a partner at Hollywood talent management powerhouse Industry Entertainment. "Outsiders rarely gain admittance." And-for now at least-people who spend their days marketing websites are definitely outsiders.
If their digital strategies are to succeed, the Hollywood machines must now court leaders and executives who can both lead their digital charges and also bridge the precarious gap between Hollywood talent and digital loyalists. Ultimately, the best digital decisions will be made by people who have proven that they know how to create entertaining film and TV content and who are likewise capable of writing an entirely new rulebook for the special considerations of digital mediums. It's a rare combination.
FUTURE LOOK
If content owners can clearly see that the new screens are entirely new mediums, then they'll ultimately discover that one is not just a substitute for the other; they will be complementary. You may watch TV when you're on your couch, but your cell phone when you're stuck in an airport. The game then, for a content owner, becomes about not just substituting one medium for the other, but about extending a viewer's experience for longer durations and across platforms.
While technology companies seem to be doing their part by getting more mobile handsets and other devices to consumers, Hollywood content owners must start pushing the envelope. Studios and networks need to start experimenting to figure out how to harness all of the different screens-broadcast, broadband, mobile, and beyond-and how to use them to aggregate audiences in ways that service the unique rules of each medium. And they must bring in decision makers who understand not just technology, but content as well.
Even though it may go against their traditional mindsets, studios must look at broadband and mobile as niche-oriented, on-demand mediums that are simply different from the one-stop-shopping experience of television. The scale needed to make money for these big content companies will come once some of them start aggregating all of the niche content channels. Just think of the milestones that will be surpassed when your television becomes able to access the internet and the rest of the screens show further signs of linking themselves together.
We're far beyond the days when the studios tried to stop VCR makers in court. No, Hollywood is not scared of the screens this time. Instead, it's procrastinating. The next 24 months will be pivotal for mapping the digital distribution frontier. Rest assured that-much like Apple did with iTunes-when one company is the first to harness the power of the screens, the rest of the herd will come stampeding.
thePlatform's My Media interface allows customers to view their current library of uploaded video or audio content.
MTV proved it had an audience for Sway's Hip-Hop Owner's Manualbefore it ordered ten episodes of the mobile-first series.
Podcast Ready's MyPodder software helps users find, manage, and share audio and video podcasts.
Studio-backed broadband outlets such as CinemaNow, which allow users to pay for and download films, are emerging as key product channels.
Companies Featured in This Article
Cinema Now
Comcast Corporation
Apple iTunes
MovieLink, LLC.
MTV Networks
MySpace
Podcast Ready, Inc.
Revver, Inc.
thePlatform, Inc.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc.
YouTube
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RICHARD HULL (RICH@SPORTSHOLLYWOOD.COM) IS A SENIOR DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT CONSULTANT CURRENTLY WORKING ON DIGITAL CONTENT STRATEGY AND CREATION FOR WARNER BROS. IN LIEU OF A SOCIAL LIFE, AND MUCH TO THE DISMAY OF HIS GIRLFRIEND, HE OCCASIONALLY WRITES ABOUT DIGITAL CONTENT ISSUES AND HOLLYWOOD.
Copyright Information Today, Inc. Nov 2006
(c) 2006 EContent. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.
