TV Everywhere International - Volume 13 No 2 TV EVERYWHERE_Vol 13 No 2 | Page 21

There are benefits for the provider as well – all
three of these components drive viewership
and stickiness (plus a wealth of data that can be
mined for insights). Furthermore, offers such
as bundled discounts across multiple services
can drive increased adoption of incremental
services, and in turn, drive customer loyalty
and reducing churn. In an age where Netflix’s
user growth is unpredictable, this is an option
that pay-TV providers should explore further in
order to enhance their staying power.
Time Warner’s announcement of a
partnership with Snapchat is just one recent
example of a traditional media company
taking its content distribution game to a new,
more portable, level. This partnership will
provide consumers with original content from
Time Warner exclusively on the social media
platform. Snapchat provides Time Warner the
opportunity to experiment with the distribution
of content in a new format – as Snapchat video
tends to be short form, five-minute videos –
and focus on reaching a new, younger audience.
While building fresh, new experiences for
younger consumers is a big focus for many
content providers, it’s important not to neglect
se lling new content services to the customers
you already have.
Some of the greatest
opportunities exist in expanding
existing relationships across
physical and digital, or ensure
that if consumers are used
to accessing content in one
fashion that you don’t disrupt,
but rather, expand that
relationship.
Keep in mind the differing flavours of how
consumers interact with content – one-time;
on a monthly all-you-can-eat plan; or on the
go with a single login and multiple devices.
Personalised and dynamic merchandising is
critical to reach the occasional couch movie
buyer through to the power user who takes
their favourite TV series on flights. Spanning
the gamut of consumers as they evolve their
video-watching habits not only drives loyalty,
but empowers those consumers within your
digital experience, letting them know that this
merchandising is tailored specifically to their
needs and wants.
Think of your merchandising platforms
as an endless canvas of possibilities, where
you can experiment with different forms of
loyalty rewards, incentives and tactics to drive
repeat business. The trick is to enable quick
experiments, to move with changing market
demands and consumer preferences.
Commerce – Make it Easy
Amidst the sensory overload of the digital
evolution, it’s ironic that a mundane thing like
how to pay, and how easy it is to pay, can mean
the difference between a loyal customer and
a one-time purchase. Ironic but true; the day
a consumer can’t cash in a gift card to watch
Rogue One can send them searching to make
the purchase elsewhere.
DSPs know that consumers
are willing to pay for their
favourite content – the question
has become – how easy can you
make it for consumers to buy
quickly and conveniently?
On a rainy Sunday, many consumers will
think there’s nothing better than purchasing
a movie through the set-top box and getting
comfortable on the couch. Traditionally, that
purchase was supported by service providers
simply adding the charge to a monthly bill.
But consumers have raised the game from the
Sunday movie scenario; evolving expectations
now require more options for digital content
purchases – especially when the purchase
needs to be made in transit from the living
room to the gym, on an iPhone.
Allow me to re-introduce the e-Wallet. The
e-Wallet has been discussed for years, but only
now, fuelled by consumer demand, is it really
beginning to gain traction. The e-Wallet allows
consumers to store their credit or debit cards,
PayPal accounts, brand specific or external
loyalty schemes, and even coupons or gift
cards they have received, all in one centralised
location. When the consumer is sitting at
the office and wants to purchase content to
watch on the train home – they can choose to
incorporate it on their existing bill, or maybe
put that gift card to use. For the consumer,
buying content from a preferred source while
on the go becomes the norm – and for the DSP,
the transaction and revenue flows through its
ecosystem seamlessly, regardless of whether
the content was charged to the monthly bill or
another payment method.
The purchasing and consumption patterns
of digital consumers can seem both selective
and random. However, the transacting options,
not to mention the number of devices that
each consumer expects, are going to continue
to grow. But that very growth presents
opportunity. By creating a digital content
ecosystem that gives consumers payment
method freedom, consumers remain engaged,
and those new and evolving revenue streams
for DSPs become real.
With consumer preferences driving new
commerce models for DSPs, many providers
are feeling the pressure to try to serve new
strategies with aging back-office systems.
From a back-office perspective, legacy systems
are often not equipped to handle the always
connected consumer world of the content
partner ecosystem. To fully execute on a digital
content strategy, DSPs must bridge the gap
between the capabilities of legacy systems and
the new capabilities needed to support digital
services.
To launch new digital services quickly
(and often) requires a nimble Digital
Services platform that brings significant
new functionality that can flex to support
new customer experience models. Ascendon
from CSG is a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS),
cloud-based platform that gives organisations
the flexibility to transition to digital services
without adding extraordinary amounts of
time, resources, complexity and cost by
deploying a separate stack that integrates
with legacy systems. Ascendon serves as
that bridge between the old and the new,
dramatically reducing costs and allowing quick
experimentation with new service models.
Today’s connected lifestyle allows viewers to
watch just about anything they want, wherever
they happen to be, and on whatever device they
have at hand. This ‘Give me what I want, when
I want it’ mentality is the driving force behind
consumer consumption of digital services.
Mastering the 3Cs of Content, Care and
Commerce can position you ahead of another
big C in the market – the competition.
For more about mastering the 3Cs of
Content, Care and Commerce, visit
CSG in Hall 14, Stand M24 during IBC,
15-19 September, or visit us anytime
at ascendon.csgi.com
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