Intelligence Briefs

Multiviewers are moving through a growth curve. According to a new industry report from Futuresource Consulting, total market value increased annually by 3% worldwide in fiscal 2018, with North America in the top slot. What does this mean for broadcast media companies?

When crafting a deal, what you don’t do can be every bit as important as what you actually do. In short, it’s easy to make the kind of error that can give the advantage to the person or team sitting on the other side of the table. Deal-making expert Eldonna Lewis-Fernandez details seven things to avoid.

Despite solid growth from the U.S. and Britain, GroupM's Brian Wieser is predicting ad growth deceleration on a global level in 2020. Wieser has specific thoughts about both radio and TV. Are global trends in line with what is expected domestically in the year ahead?

From 5G to shopvertising, e-sports, influencer marketing, brand activism, and media in-housing, which are the major trends that marketers and media owners need to be aware of over the next 12 months?

In this RBR+TVBR Observation, our editor-in-chief comments on the rise of recording artist Arizona Zervas, an internet sensation who was recently signed to a major record label and is now getting global attention thanks to Radio. His point: Spotify, and Radio, are guilty of lack of external exposure.

In June, Media Information Bureau featured columnist Ken Benner and his wife, Karen, were engaged in a 100+ station alternative broadcast inspection tour during which there was substantial concern about translator compliance. He writes about his experiences in this exclusive column.

At the center of the dispute is STELAR’s compulsory license, which permits satellite providers to retransmit some broadcast signals at regulated prices without consent. Cutting to the chase, Phoenix Center's Chief Economist asks if broadcasters should charge whatever retransmission fee the market will bear.

Does local media still matter? Who knew that the answer to this question would come while riding the F train from LaGuardia Airport to midtown Manhattan, by way of a first-time traveler to New York City who offers play-by-play of his local high school baseball team on the radio.

What's the last truly great contest a radio station has had? Our editor-in-chief recalls a February 2017 Safeway visit in the Phoenix area while walking through New York today. Nothing immediately came to mind. That's a problem, and he says it's a C-Suite issue.

This is the dawning of the age of the Antenna. Cord-cutting is driving viewership of over-the-air television, and with NEXTGEN TV set to bring addressable advertising, it could be the MVPD that loses out -- and not the broadcast TV station owner -- in the coming decade. A new Horowitz Research study notes that as the streaming video wars heat up, opportunities for broadcast TV growth will emerge.

As IP networks gain a foothold within broadcasting, broadcast control systems are becoming more complex by necessity. Futuresource Consulting’s Adam Cox, an imaging and pro video analyst, shares with RBR+TVBR his take on the broadcast landscape and the rise to prominence of broadcast control solutions in IP environments.

Of the 57 pages of informational handouts Alternative Broadcast Inspector and Media Information Bureau featured columnist Ken Benner also carries with him when visiting every radio or TV station is one that he's pleased to share with RBR+TVBR readers today.

Analyst Michael Nathanson believes that while the industry is under siege from accelerating cord-cutting and audience erosion, "Fox’s laser focus on live sports and news content is the right strategy to drive higher per subscriber pricing and more stable viewership trends."

Ahh ... the Public File booklet. Everybody loves that required 34-page item that must be provided, at no charge, for anyone asking for it, right?  Well, like it or not, Ken Benner says it is an "absolute must read for all of us involved to any extent in broadcasting." And, it's just been "substantially updated."

With discussion heating up that NBCUniversal's Peacock will abandon a subscription tier and stick with an ad-supported platform, there's much anticipation -- and apprehension, for some -- as to what will transpire for video-fueled media in 2020. If you're a broadcaster or MVPD operator, this report is essential reading.