Editorial
I first heard about videos on demand on the web when I was finishing my engineering studies in the 90s. At that time you needed a full night to download a driver with a 33.6 mb/s connection.
Let’s just say that not a lot of people in the classroom thought the teacher was serious about VoD, let alone streaming. Fast forward 20 years, I don’t have cable anymore and I only use streaming services plus an add-on for live sports. To put it mildly, let’s just say that this is another one I did not see coming. But in my defence, I was not the only one…
When you look for examples of industries that have been completely disrupted by new technologies, the media industry is a very good candidate. Streaming platforms are taking over traditional broadcaster, traditional broadcasters team up to create streaming platforms, content providers now become streaming platforms, streaming platforms create their own content, content creators and influencers become the new content, big data drive personalization that in turn drives targeted advertisement revenues, interactive media will now make it possible to buy the products used in your favourite series, you will be able to watch your shows in the metaverse, gaming platforms are becoming the new social media. Is everyone still following?
Despite all this, the media industry is doing pretty well and growing at 4.6% CAGR (PWC). According to BCG, the combined value of the top media companies more than doubled over the 2016 to 2021 period. Video games, publishing, and digital media led the highest returns to shareholders when the median returns for broadcast and cable TV were negative. Creating more value, content and human centricity seems to be the winning couple. There does not seem to be a magic bullet but creating exclusive content, teaming up with content creators, and personalizing user experience is definitely part of the recipe.
In this issue of This Week in Consulting, we explore key trends in the entertainment and media industry, how technology evolutions enable massive competition, how broadcasting and streaming strategies are evolving to create more value, the future of video games, and how advertising budgets are shifting to digital media.
Enjoy the read. Feel free to comment. Would love to hear your views.
Laurent THOMAS
Chairman Consulting Quest
This week’s must read
In This Week’s Must Read, we explore key trends in the entertainment and media industry.
Global Entertainment & Media Outlook Perspectives Report 2022 offers comprehensive five-year forecasts of consumer and advertising spending for 14 segments across 52 territories. More people around the world are spending more of their time, attention, and money on the complex and increasingly immersive E&M experiences that are available to them. No wonder, this report forecasts that by 2026, the global E&M industry will approach US$3tn in revenues. At the same time, it also states that the stable overall growth pattern masks underlying volatility. Know more from this insightful piece by PwC.
This week’s media
Let’s take a look at the top 4 trends in media, networking and production that were big in 2022. From full IP end-to-end style production to the move to a cloud-based unified origination system and from cross-platform audience monetization model to a clear shift toward SaaS models, these trends are ruing the media scene. Know more from this video from Imagine Communications.
Thought Leadership
In this comprehensive research paper about The future of media & entertainment, Cognizant predicts that the digital world is merging with the physical world but the future of media is human. The future will offer a world of opportunities, but the transformation will require substantial steps and boldness.
Gaming is becoming an ever greater part of our daily lives. What does the future of the video game industry look like? What are the three big trends that are changing the video game industry? What are some of the areas that will differentiate future winners? How should game developers and publishers prepare to make the most of the opportunities available in this space? Find answers in this insightful paper from Bain.
Consumers do not think twice before switching their loyalty to entertainment brands if they do not find the experience profoundly satisfactory. Entertainment brands, even the big players, may lose out if they do not pay adequate attention to the areas of UX and UI. As part of its monthly UX series, this Elixirr article explores the good, the bad, and the ugly in the entertainment market in terms of UI and UX.
After revolutionizing the ways how consumers access entertainment and educational content, the streaming landscape gradually became complicated, expensive, and hard to use. In this Accenture survey of 6,000 consumers in North America, South America, Europe, South Africa, and Asia Pacific, participants identified a lot of room for improvement in several areas. Read this report to get an understanding of global consumers’ preferences, beliefs, and behaviours regarding their video content streaming experiences.
This week’s consulting news selection
The pure-play sustainability consultancy, ERM has acquired Libryo, a global cloud-based Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) regulatory intelligence platform. This acquisition will offer clients a comprehensive solution to their compliance requirements. |
International engineering, digital services, and project management company Assystem has acquired 100% of shares in leading project management and controls group LogiKal. This adds 100 skilled project management professionals to Assystem Group’s workforce and is expected to significantly strengthen Assystem’s project management services offering.|
Artefact, a global data transformation consultancy, acquires the data consulting firm, Arca Blanca to expand its UK footprint and further its ambition to become the global independent leader in data consulting.|
Bringing more than 15 years of industry experience, covering areas such as commodity trading, infrastructure development, investment analysis, developing new market offtake models and building commercial partnerships, Rhys Vigna joins PA Consulting’s Energy and Utilities practice.|
Laurent is the Chairman and Co-founder of Consulting Quest. Focused on greater value creation, and being thoroughly familiar with Consulting, Laurent has sourced and sold millions of dollars worth of Consulting over the course of his career. Prior to joining Consulting Quest, Laurent was Executive Vice President Oil and Gas at Solvay and Senior Partner Transformation at Oliver Wyman.
