Gamechanger: Personalized Video Content

Pipeline: How do you see the video and digital content landscape changing?

Auteri: Video consumption is growing rapidly and is being driven by internet video over mobile and non-TV consumption.  TV is still strong but mobile consumption, even at home, is growing stronger.  Also, video services are no longer being driven by the channel or the package, but by the program or the show. In the future, if a user wants to watch a show, they will to have the tools and the personalization engine to present options that are relevant to them. In a recent study it was shown that most users only view 17 channels, regardless of their subscription package. But, in an experiment at previous company we tested with one operator who allowed users to subscribe to any eight channels, we found hundred of different clusters of users with many different combinations.  It's the personalization engine that must reduce the burden on the service operator and the user to find and present the content that is relevant to the user. Now we are observing this happening in Canada where next year operators will be offering micro packages and pick-and-pay channel offerings. We believe it's very important to have the profiling system in place to provide the content in the right way - so the user engages with more relevant content through the personalization features and generates the same or greater ARPU than a traditional subscription package. This is what we are working on now.

Pipeline: What does the future of video services look like to you and ContentWise?

Auteri: Linear TV is here to stay, especially for sport and other live events - where the viewer wants to be a part of something that is happening as they are watching. It's part of the human experience of life, to have a synchronized experience. We believe online consumption will be the dominant model for all the rest with a balance between subscription and advertising-based models with both having the same personalization goal. One to provide more relevant content to users to reduce churn and the other to build more detailed and relevant user profiles to fuel advertising campaigns.

Pipeline: If you were going to summarize the primary driver for today's content technology decisions into one word, which word would you choose?

Auteri: Relevancy.