Nightshift

UK consumers’ interest for on-demand content impacts primarily:
- recently released top movies (84%)
- TV comedies (79°%)
- live music concerts and recorded gigs (72%)
Before closing the door on the enlightening Digital Entertainment survey I’ve been mentioning before the Eastern break , I’ d like to share in this post and the next one a couple of additional findings and thoughts. This massive interest for on-demand content alone would be already good news in itself, specially for our MSN video platform which objective - with the help of our content partnership- is to provide a wide bread of content available within these categories, along with all the interactive features meeting consumers’ social networking needs and content control expressed in the first part of the survey. Add to it that consumers do demand a single platform providing them with this on-demand content as the majority fear multiple too technologically challenging applications and you make it great news. And a bit of a challenge too.
For we still have to raise mass market awareness on our product (back in January, timing of the snapshot made for the survey, we had not started to push the service yet -making it a 48% respondents not aware of MSN video and a mere 8% afficionados or occasional users) and develop new advertising solutions.

The good news: If the on-demand content interest is strong, free access preference is even stronger: overall, when confronted with three possible options (subscription with unlimited content, PPV and free ad-supported models) “70% respondents would rather put up with the ads than pay for the content - compared to 15% for each of the other option“.
The challenging news :
The biggest on-demand programs are also those which account for the biggest willingness to pay for the content : Live music i.e. generates 52% of vote for willingness to pay - with equal split between the 2 paying options. Who said the music industry was dying? Clearly a huge new business opportunity here. Again with new challenges to tackle with ( copyrighted content and illegal downloads begin a big art of it). But who said life was easy?
The advertising industry is also facing new challenges. 80% respondents indicate that they fast forward the adverts “most of the time” or “all of the time when they watch recorded program”. Advertising is not any bit more dead than the music industry. And as the music industry it has -we have- to find a new more valuable way to reach consumers . In the United States some advertisers have been experimenting with adverts that make sense only when watched in fast forward

Seriously, I’ve mentioned it before: standard ad products can still generate good results but we do have to move towards more creative ideas to execute on marketing messages - be it on TV or online. Sponsorships activities, embedded advertising and branded entertainment i.e. content developed on behalf of the brand - are a big part of the answer. Viable business model will imply to think online advertising as part of the positive online experience with the ‘ad’ adding value to the environment, not disrupting it.