SimonWaldman.net

Almost incredible interactive chart over at MediaGuardian.

Source: FlickrAn example of distinctly not-live blogging. So, last week I went to one of the seminars currently underway as part of the BERR/ DCMS Convergence Think Tank.

What is this thing?, you ask. And, to quote their site, it…

“has been set up to examine the implications of technological development for the media and communications industries, and the consequences for both markets and consumers. It is envisaged that the CTT will have a key role in helping to shape future policy development in relation to these sectors, which include TV, radio, mobile and fixed telecoms and online services.”

Anyway, this particular seminar was titled: ‘Competition and innovation: content and services’. I was asked to be one of the panelists (more on my humble contribution later) but there we three other people speaking who had me scribbling furiously away: Peter Bazalgette, Dawn Airey from ITV and David Pattison from iLevel. What follows is paraphrased bullet points – I’d hesitate to call these direct quotes.

1. Peter Bazalgette giving the keynote on Opportunities and Threats to the content market.

* Talking about the TV market – people want proven product, which means in some markets there is no new product at all. This is good news for the UK and US where people are more willing to take creative risks.

* There is currently raging Anglophilia in the US. Previously you couldn’t get a meeting with major players in the US. Now they’re sending people over here all the time.

* There is a new market emerging in the trading of scripts – just as there is already a market in formats.

* There is real value in the combination of the old and the new – giving the example of the gaming businesses based on Deal or No Deal, and the need to ‘exploit the hell out of properties in the digital universe’

* There’s huge potential to harness the next generation of talent online (ie looking for the funniest clips on YouTube) etc.

* The pace of deregulation around commercial models is too sluggish. In particular he welcomed product placement, but wanted it in place before 2009, and stressed that it should be up to the market to decide how many minutes of advertising ITV should carry each hour, not regulators.

* Mentioned the need for a technical platform for the short form market (OK – my notes get a bit crappy at this point,

2. Dawn Airey – (who just had five minutes)

Echoed a lot of what was said earlier, but…

* Stressed the lengthening value of the food chain in the TV market and expansion in all corners of the world offering new opportunities for UK broadcasters.

* For the UK to sustain success, we need to be clear about the elements of success to date, namely: Anglophilia; High spending per head (I think!!); and competition based on quality.

* Also stressed the importance of existing public service broadcasters who are responsible for 82% of original production in the UK. Online content providers aren’t investing.

* Finally stressed the need for radical thinking and to overthrow current wisdoms…the next few years are going to be about transition as the current financial model is failing. Including the need to think about future revenue models where content is distributed far and wide online.

3. David Pattison (also with five minutes)

* Advertisers are realising that digital isn’t just another media. It is much closer to commerce -and a much greater part of people’s lives.

* Things also happen much quicker with digital advertsing rather than traditional. But his big surprise since joining i-Level has been that with digital campaigns 80% of the activity happens after the campaign has been booked.

* Advertisers will be content providers – get used to it.

* Reputation management has beome a key issue for advertisers

* Stressed again the value of the combination of old and new (giving the example of the Guardian’s growth online); but also new models – eg We7′s ad funded music.

* In terms of challenges – three things. First it’s still not clear how we will build brands on the internet.

* Second – we need to ensure that we keep successful self regulation.

* Need protection from Google who want to disintermediate agencies.

4. And my bit

So, I sat on a separate panel on what should be a regulators response. Not being a regulator, this isn’t my natural territory. But I wanted to make four points.

* First, that we operate in a much broader media landscape these days – where what the BBC or ITV does can have a significant impact on, say a regional newspaper. Our concerns aren’t so much about similar players with similar cost bases, facing similar challenges – but more about global technology players who can leverage their skills into local markets (eg obviously Google) or those operating with completely different commercial expectations – eg The BBC. This has an impact for how people start to see ownership and competition issues. It also means that people have to think beyond the broadcast world as they think of the next wave of public sector ‘broadcasting’

* Second that digital innovation needs to be commercial as well as creative. In other words – it’s all well and good publicly funding cool digital content – but for the health of the UK market and indeed UK plc as a whole,, we need to make sure that the next generation of digital media properties, both large and small, are commercially viable. Again – we need to think carefully about whether any public intervention in the digital market will reduce commercial innovation, rather than spark it.

* Third that the next few years for traditional media owners – in particular newspaper owners – involve a process of painful transition from print to digital – and regulators need to think carefully about anything that might disrupt that process of transformation. My particular example was the launch of a new series of local sites from the BBC, which could be seriously damaging to many regional newspapers online efforts.

* Finally – beyond the world of ownership and competition regulation, there are two areas of law which cause constant challenges to those runnign digital businesses: first the laws of contempt of court; and second some of the legal liabilities over user generated content. Both of which are potentially holding back innovation in the UK.