The Hindu Business Line : It's all converging

MTV recently launched a spoof on the popular blockbuster, Dhoom. The spoof titled Ghoom, was launched in theatres. Simultaneously, the company also created a Web site called www.ghoomthemovie.com and had video screensavers, PC wallpapers, screen shots and MP3 available for downloads. On the mobile platform, there was a Ghoom Zone and a dedicated SMS line (6882), apart from ringtones and wallpaper downloads.

Similarly, Star India recently announced its mobile communication venture, 7827, and is all set to deliver all forms of telecom content, be it voice, SMS, mobile TV or 3G. The company already has a presence in the segment with its ringtone and wallpaper downloads.

Peep into any industry, convergence of media is the buzzword. Apart from focusing on creating content for their core media, which is television, most TV companies are looking for a presence in other media such as mobile or Internet. In the news channels space, for instance, channels such as NDTV and Aaj Tak are already present in this arena. Similarly, TV18, which claims to have posted a 600 per cent revenue growth in its Internet business (Moneycontrol.com; IBNlive.com and commoditiescontrol.com), is shortly going to launch a mobile application, which will enable GPRS mobile users to access all the channels from the TV18 stable. Also on the cards is the launch of mobile alerts, which will give users information on the stock market, news headlines, business headlines and commodities.

The convergence story continues in the FMCG, automobile and banking sectors too. The most recent example of convergence in the FMCG sector is the Web site sunsilkgangofgirls.com launched by HLL to promote the Sunsilk brand. The film industry is also cashing on the mobile, Internet and TV media in a big way. The most recent example is that of Karan Johar's blockbuster Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. Apart from a mega music launch, Johar has also associated with Mauj Telecom for a presence on the mobile platform. One can not only download ringtones of its songs through SMS, but can also call avail of the Maujtalk (5057007) service to listen to songs and interviews of the cast of the film.

While convergence of media definitely seems to be the way of life from now on, L.V. Krishnan, CEO, TAM Media Research, looks at this concept from two perspectives. He says that if one looks at it from a consumer's point of view, there is nothing called different media for a consumer. "A consumer is only interested about consuming entertainment or information on which ever medium that is conveniently available to him/her."

However, from the brand or company's point of view, Krishnan says that it is more integration than convergence. "Companies are realising that fragmentation of message is becoming higher, which is resulting in high cost of advertising. They feel that integration gives higher return of investment, and at the same time they can reach consumers at various touch points."

Sai Kumar, CEO, TV18, says that convergence has arrived and is here to stay. "Marketers have started looking at communication and interactivity across various modes of contact. We at TV18 have a 360-degree approach where we will be engaging with our viewers and users using all available platforms such as Net, voice, SMS, WAP. Convergence will become the transaction/interactivity layer in businesses. And it can manage large numbers of concurrent users/transactions."

A great story knows no boundaries, says Rajat Jain, Managing Director, Walt Disney India. "At a marketing level, convergence is termed as a synergistic approach for our business today. Content on television travels through to publishing, FMCG, Internet, computer games and so on. The most recent example is how we successfully launched the Princess range of toys after showcasing them on TV, movies, books and also on the walls through Nerolac Paints. The idea is to create multiple opportunities for kids and families to experience their favourite characters and stories."

Revenue model?

As more and more companies across industries look at multiple media platforms, especially the digital media, it is also emerging as a revenue-earning model for most of them. Says Kaizad Pardiwala, Vice-President, OgilvyOne (Mumbai), "Indian Idol got more than 55 million votes via SMS between November 2004 and March 2005. At Rs 3 per SMS, that is Rs 16.5 crore. The telecom companies made Rs 11.5 crore and Sony about Rs 5 crore. Also, e-commerce is growing rapidly in India and a host of companies are setting up online shops across portals. In fact, e-commerce, which shows an approximately 100 per cent growth year on year from 2003-2006, is estimated to grow by approximately 95 per cent in 2007."

Similarly, Keertan Adyanthaya, Vice-President, Digital Media, MTV says, "At Viacom India and MTV Networks, we look at digital media (Mobile & Internet) as drivers for both audiences as well as revenue. We are equipping ourselves to produce rich media content based on our TV content to keep our audiences engaged."

Viren Popli, Senior Vice-President, Star India, says that while the digital platform, especially mobile, is definitely emerging as a revenue generation model for most companies, what needs to be seen is how big a revenue platform it will be in future. "This will depend on the content creators and aggregators, and the next two years are going to be crucial for the growth of the industry."

Giving a perspective of the film industry, Mr Arun Gupta, CEO, Mauj Telecom, says that revenue generated from the mobile platform is huge. "While an average film gets revenue to the tune of Rs 10-15 lakh from mobile, a big blockbuster can earn anything between Rs 40 lakh and Rs 45 lakh," says Gupta.

However, a certain section of industry feels that new media is in its infancy and is more a promotional platform than a revenue generator. Says Zarina Mehta, Chief Operating Officer, Hungama, "Convergence is really important, but it will take time to mature. It is at least two-three years away, though we are all working on it."

The channel recently launched a series of mobile games, Hungaming, based on its popular shows Full Toss and Gol Gol Gulam. However, Mehta says that the core focus would be on getting the programming strategy in place. "Once I get my branding right, I will exploit new media."

Atul Phadnis, Chief Evangelist, Media e2e, agrees with Mehta of Hungama that new media is at a nascent stage and is yet to be a revenue generator for companies. But having said so, he also feels that if a company doing a contest for metro youth doesn't have a mobile or Net solution, it would definitely miss an entire universe. "Convergence clearly creates an incremental audience base which can be navigated back to your original content."

Reinvent content?

A section of the industry feels that it is Bollywood which has really benefited from convergence of media, while TV has to reinvent itself to make convergence a success story.

Adyanthaya of MTV doesn't agree with this view. "Quite on the contrary, its actually television which has made great strides in activating consumers of mobile and Internet. Whether you look at an example of MTV Roadies where auditions happened through the mobile, the MTV Immies where we carried live online videocasts from the venue itself, Vh1's Ticket 2 Ride where the only mode of entry is through mobile or even competing networks such as Star and Sony with KBC2 and Indian Idol."

Pardiwala of OgilvyOne, adds by saying, "The TV industry is using the mobile medium amazingly well. Be it through becoming a crorepati dream of KBC, the craze of Indian Idol and Sa Re Ga Ma Pa or through the title song/signature tune downloads of popular serials, the digital media has been well-exploited by the TV industry."

Purnendu Bose, COO, SaharaOne, also shares the same opinion. "I don't agree that the film industry has used the mobile and Internet marketing more effectively than the TV industry. In fact, non-fiction shows on TV have created a huge euphoria through Internet and mobile marketing through game shows; talent hunts where phone lines have been choked, systems crashed breaking all records of viewer interaction. So television has been at par if not more in using these media to reach the audience." However, analysts do feel that it is important to tailor-make content to suit the needs of the media. Says Phadnis of media e2e, "There is a strong need to create specific content for each media. People have earlier made the mistake of releasing the same content on Net as well as on TV and print, due to which the Net bombed."

Krishnan of TAM agrees with Phadnis and adds, "It is also important to understand whether the target audience has access to that a media. For a general entertainment channel, to put a saas-bahu serial on mobile may not make sense because the target audience it caters to may not be having access to a handset. However, a game show or a reality show could appeal to the mobile audiences."

In fact, Popli of Star India, also appreciates the need to create content specific for each media. Referring to its 7827 initiative, he says, "We have a set of TV channels which speak to different kinds of audiences. We are drawing on each of them to advise us on how to generate content. Our mobile content will not necessarily be an extension of our shows."

Challenges

While the industry at large is excited about media convergence, it also has its share of concerns. The most unanimous one being lack of adequate bandwidth. "The bandwidth cost is too high and has to be brought down drastically," says Popli. Phadnis of Media e2e, points out, "In Korea, there are half-a-million subscribers who receive 11 channels live on their mobiles. It will take us quite some time to reach there. Only when we have the bandwidth, can we ramp up the business."

The other challenge is of course educating consumers to use the various new media. "The industry will not grow unless the consumer is educated," adds Star's Popli. "All our ads done on air always talk about the process to download the various features we offer. Our Web site also gives a lot of information on downloads. We are also planning to come out with training videos which we show to our consumers at their convenience," he adds.

Apart from reaching consumers at various touch points through convergence of media, companies are also looking at it as a media to cater to individual needs of a consumer. And, for this, the need of the hour is to generate adequate content. "We don't have enough content yet," he admits.

As Popli explains, content availability has not kept pace with the changing consumers. Content generators have to generate enough to cater to individual tastes. "If I would like to watch football on my mobile, my colleague may like to watch a game show," he adds.

Phadnis of Media e2e says that convergence and creating content for it is still the last thing in people's mind. "Our content is still not there."

As Krishnan of TAM puts it, there are two major hurdles that companies have to overcome to make the convergence story a success.

"The companies have to first ensure that their target audience have access to the media and then talk about creating content to suit individual needs."

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