subscriptions , FAST channels are the development de jour .

And it is not to say that just because technology means you can do it , you should : mobile TV was the dog that didn ’ t bark for year after

SVoD . Consumers don ’ t like the rising prices and the need to subscribe to many services to see all the good shows . This has brought two ‘ retro trends ’ – advertising is being added to the mix to bring subscription prices down , and bundling is making a comeback ( see main feature ).

Advertising – whether on discount SVoD levels or FAST channels – is a finite resource . Once again , service providers look to technology – programmatic sales , automated insertion - to make it profitable to sell it as cheaply as the oversupply of avails dictates .

breakthroughs in compression brought

first HD and then UHD . Then big jumps in

compression of IP content , combined with

wider adoption of genuine broadband to the

home , ushered in streaming and the end

of bundled pay-TV . That ’ s the pattern in

this sector : technology makes a new model

year . Then , when it did ,

remember Quibi , no one

gave it the time of day ?

Maybe they should have

made it 3D ? Maybe not .

Where next ? Some

think we are at or near peak

possible , then the profit motive proves it out – or not – in fairly short order . Those late to the streaming party are still paying the price .

But , but . This is not to say that ‘ old models ’ don ’ t survive and thrive . FTA is still the way hundreds of millions around the world receive most of their TV . Away from

w

Digital Media Intelligence SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2024

Bundling is edging back with some providers organising and curating SVoD offerings alongside branded guides and UIs . But it is nascent . Will we soon see transactional PPV TV and genuine independent third-party UIs ? Seems logical . Certainly , a new UI and / or common player would improve some services ; I can barely believe that some providers spend billions on rights and content , and also speculate happily about AI bringing every viewer what they want before they know it themselves , while their UIs already in the marketplace feel like they were created by fiendish crossword setters .

Twenty-five years from now , perhaps viewers won ’ t be watching at all but will be mainly absorbed in holographic VR experiences of their chosen drama or game . Perhaps not . For sure , technology will make lots of new things possible , to know which will work out , I guess you ’ ll have to be there .

Nick Snow

EUROMEDIA 15