Industry overview
The Media Landscape for Independently Produced Content has become Volatile due to shifting distribution outlets
Four major trends in entertainment distribution have created opportunities in commercially oriented independent content
A brief review of how each major entertainment revenue segment is trending will provide insight into areas that are over saturated and areas that are underserved
SVOD is dominated by Tech driven companies and Major Studio players that can invest and lose billions in TV episodic content as they capture long term market share and consumer brand equity, unfortunately most will not spend aggressively on Independently financed films except for occasional filler needs.
TVOD remains focused on feature films and has become the main place to find Hollywood’s recent theatrically released films and Independent films and can be found on cable systems and Digital Outlets. This will remain an important way to monetize Independent films and requires smart distribution combined with strong social media and analytics
AVOD has long been ignored due to historically lower quality content but as “must have” SVOD options multiply, the combined cost is driving huge growth in AVOD consumer traffic for second tier content. Independent Films will benefit from this strong viewership when focused on the appropriate audience demographics.
DVD has long been written off by experts on the coasts, but it remains a viable platform for lower income middle American demographics and will continue to drive real revenue for 5+ years. Companies that produce content that has broad mainstream appeal must ensure proper distribution to maximize this meaningful revenue stream
SVOD players currently dominate the consumer’s daily consumption attention driven by super high production value episodic TV coming primarily from Amazon Prime, Hulu, and now Disney + and Apple+ with Warner’s HBO Max to arrive soon
TVOD & EST outlets remain available to all quality content and they have developed numerous ways to reach consumers through high traffic download sites, cable operators, satellite providers and other free access outlets. Companies like I-Tunes, Google, Fandango, Comcast, Spectrum, Dish, and Direct TV
TVOD & EST relies on driving actual measurable transactions that can balance cost of promotion and advertising with actual revenue generated
AVOD has seen a massive traffic shift in the last few months and we have seen several major media companies recognize this trend and begin to stake out AVOD strategies. AVOD players now include Viacom’s Pluto TV, Tubi TV, Roku, Film Rise and NBC’s Peacock has officially landed
Major on-line advertising services like Google and Facebook will likely ramp up their advertising integration to better leverage their massive advertising driven traffic
All these rapid growth services will need content and will focus on one-off film content which is easier to acquire and finance