Content protection vital with emergence of new media platforms

LA India Film Council unveils Ernst & Young report on 'Monetising Your Content in a Digital World'

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Delhi | October 26, 2012

The LA India Film Council in association with the Centre for Content Protection (CCP) hosted a panel discussion on 'The Long Tail of Film Distribution and the Role Of Technological Protection Measures (TPMS)' in conjunction with FICCI's 4^th MEBC held in Chennai.

Uday Singh, MD, Motion Picture Distributors Association (MPDA) India, said, "The long tail is really happening. It's facilitated and enabled by digital technology. However, it's essential that policymakers understand the need to create a proper infrastructure, which includes protection and security, transparent market access, and weeding out content theft."

Films make their maximum financial returns during the initial months of their release. However, theatrical is not the only return-on-investment for movies given the emergence of Pay TV and other business models on platforms such as IPTV, mobile, packaged media and Internet. India's National Telecom Policy 2011 envisions providing high speed and high quality broadband access to all village panchayats through optical fibre by 2014. The government intends to provide affordable and reliable broadband on demand by 2015 and to achieve 175 million broadband connections by 2017 at minimum 2 Mbps download speed. This paves the way for emerging business models and the need for content protection measures that are critical for the feasibility of these new delivery channels.

A special council publication commissioned from Ernst & Young titled 'Monetising Your Content in a Digital World' was unveiled at the MEBC. The report focuses on the changing nature of media and entertainment consumption and the impact that these trends are having on M&E companies' digital strategies and how they are tailoring their product and service strategies to meet the increasing consumer demand for content anywhere, anytime and in any form.

“As distribution gets digitised, content choice for the consumer increases manifold leading to a fragmented media landscape. Successful digital monetisation in a fragmented landscape depends on sharp customer targeting, providing enhanced value in entertainment experiences and seamless integration of targeted advertising micropayment mechanisms. Media owners who rework their business models based on these parameters will be valued in the future,” said Raghav Anand, Segment Champion Digital Media, Ernst & Young

The panel discussed the role of TPMS in this scenario and went on to chart the road ahead for India. "There is so much potential for Indian films worldwide. With technologies many more communities worldwide can enjoy Indian movies after their theatrical release. We explored the most current aspects of digital distribution and technologies in our panel.” said Isa Seow, Managing Director, CCP.

Technology and accompanying digital rights are central in enabling new business models that meet consumer needs. Joining the panel were industry experts such as Krishnan Rajagopalan, Head of Technology, Group Digital Life, Singtel; Ankan Biswas, Chairman, Digital Broadcast Council, Consumer Electronics Appliances Manufacturers Association; Paul Jackson, Chief Engineer, NDS; and Nagendra S, Head - Sales and Strategy, Ignis Technology Solutions.

Established in November of 2010 by a joint declaration between the City of Los Angeles and the Indian film industry, the Los Angeles India Film Council was formed to facilitate and strengthen motion picture production, distribution, technology, content protection, and commercial cooperation between the two communities. The current governing council members are: Film Federation of India, Film and Television Producers Guild of India, National Film Development Corporation, Ficci, AP Film Chambers, California Film Commission, Office of the Mayor of City of Los Angeles, MovieLabs, Technicolor India, DQ Entertainment, Reliance MediaWorks, Prime Focus, Peter Law Group, Whistling Woods International, Film and Television Institute of India, University of Southern California - School of Cinematic Arts, UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television and Motion Picture Distributors Association (India).

For more information, visit: www.laindiafilmcouncil.org

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