Broadcasters should embrace social media networks, Tercek says

OTTAWA—The broadcast sector should move away from traditional, one-way broadcasting to online distribution and two-way dialogues that encourage an exchange with audiences on social networking platforms, media expert Robert Tercek said Thursday at the Canadian Media Production Association’s (CMPA) Prime Time Conference. Tercek, an adjunct professor and lecturer at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinema-Television, said unlike traditional TV distribution companies, which retain customers with long-term contracts and look to maximize revenues from their subscriptions, the Internet provides for an “architecture of collaboration” with viewers. Tercek said over-the-top sites like Hulu are now interactive, allowing users to post comments while they watch. He said that, according to his research, 2.1 billion people are using online social networks worldwide. In 2012, 40 million households will use Internet TV services, he added. He referred to the popularity of the HBO Go app, which makes HBO content available on mobile devices. In the U.S., HBO Go is expected to be available on the Microsoft Inc. Xbox 360 gaming console by April 1. “If you take the 21 million subscribers to Netflix’s streaming service and 28 million households that have HBO, and will have HBO Go available to them, it’s not difficult to see,” Tercek said. HBO Canada also offers its content online in a streaming service available to Canadian TV subscribers of Rogers Communications Inc., BCE Inc., Shaw Communications Inc. and Quebecor Media Inc. subsidiary Videotron Ltd. He said broadcasters should follow audiences online, particularly to social media networks. Unlike traditional media, social media offers more freedom to companies because it is not bound by language or business licensing rules, Tercek said. In Canada, Montreal-area startup company Seevibes is helping TV broadcasters and content producers gain a better understanding of their online influence. Seevibes founder Laurent Maisonnave told The Wire Report last December that the company is helping TV broadcasters find new and compelling data to support negotiations with potential advertisers. Tercek said that, last year, there were 250 studio film releases in the U.S., 50,000 independent films and 300,000,000 videos were uploaded to Google Inc.’s YouTube. According to his research, he said, eight hours of video per minute were uploaded to YouTube in 2007. Last year, he said, that amount increased to 48 hours worth of video per minute. In 2012, 60 hours worth of video will be uploaded to YouTube per minute, he predicted. Tercek said the popularity of YouTube is making it profitable for small independent producers and companies that can receive income from Google based on web clicks. “It is possible to make money on YouTube,” he said. He said Google has started funding YouTube channels like the Spanish-language Vivo Channel or Machinima, an English-language channel that caters to the online gaming community. Tercek said 700 channels were pitched to YouTube last year, and of them, 100 were funded, receiving between two-to-five million dollars each. Christine Shipton, vice-president of original content at Shaw subsidiary Shaw Media, which owns the Global Television network, said during a conference panel discussion Thursday that the industry needs to innovate and move towards “the world that Robert is talking about.” “We see the OTT and we see the massive competitors at Shaw Media,” Shipton said. Shaw is being nimble and trying to see how it can compete, she said. Shipton said that, as a broadcaster, Shaw wants to know its audience and deliver content on every platform, including mobile devices, computers and televisions. The industry should come together to determine what multi-platform content will be made available and how, she said. “Whether it’s on linear television, on VOD or web streaming, whatever it’s going to be,” Shipton said, “we need to do that.” Tercek cited data collected by Deloitte that shows the cancellation rate of subscription TV services in the U.S. reached three per cent in 2011. Nielsen’s number was slightly higher, he said, recording a U.S. subscription TV cancellation rate of 4.5 per cent in 2011. Tercek said a large part of online content viewing begins on Facebook because people are discovering new content through friends on the social network. He said 850 million people are Facebook users and half that amount, 425 million, accessed Facebook on their mobile phones, he said. Twitter has 200 million members, he added, and Google+, a service that didn’t exist at this time a year ago, has 90 million members. Tercek cited research from Nielsen that said the average person in the U.S. will look at 2,800 to 3,000 web pages in any given month and 800 of them will happen inside Facebook's network. He predicted that, in 2012, Facebook and Google+ combined would reach a global audience of one billion. “Take every number that you know in the television industry and add a zero,” Tercek said. “Then you’ll get a sense of the scale and scope of these businesses.” dgrenier@thewirereport.ca

Broadcasters should embrace social media networks, Tercek says

News | 03/02/2012 8:27 pm EST

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