Monthly Archives: January 2013
The TV Business: A Primer For The Uninformed
It’s a relentless drumbeat: the TV industry is dead. It’s just like the music industry. 20somethings are avoiding the cord. I want HBO a la carte. YouTube will kill cable. The TV industry is dead. And yet, if there’s a common thread to all these articles and blog posts, it’s that so many of the people writing them have a limited idea of how the television industry actually works, particularly from a business perspective. So here’s a little primer on how the US television industry works (there are significant difference in other countries), just to clear the air. The Players: This is step one – knowing who is who and what their relationships are. We are going to look at the 7 key players, circa 2013: The Networks, The MVPDs, The Premium Networks, The OTT Networks, Smart TVs, Third Party devices and Social TV. PLAYER #1: The Networks: The networks (ABC, CBS, MTV, et al) provide content and right now, … Continue reading
TV Everywhere Just Got Blown Wide Open: New On Digiday
Charlie Ergun sure knows how to keep things interesting. The Dish CEO poked his finger in the eye of the TV networks last year with his ad-skipping Hopper device. He just jabbed them again when he introduced the SlingHopper at CES — and blew TV Everywhere wide open. READ THE REST ON DIGIDAY.COM
10 Questions About The TV Industry 2013
All the upheaval in the TV industry (and we’re just at the beginning) leaves us with lots of questions that can only be answered over time. Here are ten of the big ones we’ll be watching in 2013: 1. Will Anyone Cave? Meaning, will any of the networks give in and start selling content to a third party disruptor like Apple, Google or Intel, opening the door for the complete dismantling of the current economic structure? Right now that seems unlikely: the TV industry is not like the music industry or even the cell phone industry – none of the major players are losing money. But stranger things have happened and it’s worth keeping an eye on, particularly because until someone actually does cave, innovation is pretty much a pipe dream. 2. How Many Hours Until The Other MVPDs Start Pressuring The Networks Over TV Everywhere? As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, the Sling Hopper pretty much blows the whole TV Everywhere scenario wide … Continue reading
From Beet.tv: KIT Digital Turns Video Ads Into Retail Experience With Ad Locker
KIT’s Alan Wolk was interviewed at the 2nd Screen Summit at CES by Beet.tv’s Megan O’Neill LAS VEGAS — As second screen technology continues to evolve, consumer desire for the second screen experience is on the rise and video software and services company KIT Digital is at the forefront of this evolution. At the 2nd Screen Summit at CES we had the opportunity to talk with KIT Digital’s Global Lead Analyst, Alan Wolk, to find out what the company has in store for the coming year. In our video interview, Wolk discusses a Windows 8 app, which KIT Digital recently created for 4oD, channel 4 in the UK, and is “already one of the more popular apps on the Windows Store.” Wolk also told us about updates to KIT’s Social Program Guide, a white label solution enabling cable television providers to offer subscribers a second screen experience. Talk explains that KIT is prepared to launch a major update which is … Continue reading
KIT’s Alan Wolk Named One Of 20 Top Thinkers In Social TV and Second Screen
The impressive list includes Zeebox’s Anthony Rose, MIT’s Marie-Jose Monpetit, GetGlue’s Alex Iskold, Dijit’s Jeremy Toeman, Orange’s Nicolas Bry, Natan Edelsburg from Lost Remote and our own Alan Wolk. That’s the sort of company we like to find ourselves in. Well done.