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Quick Jump Menu to this Issue’s Articles March 31st, 2004 Overview Digital Hollywood – Too Much Good Content – Part 1: Importance of Content Protection MTA and ‘the Wonderful World of Color’
Importance of Content Protection – Part 1
by Ken Pyle ([email protected])
March 31st, 2004 Issue
Everything I Know, I Learned in High School…
This is going to sound strange, but I want to start off my portion of today’s panel with a quote from one of my high school English teachers, who stated that “plagiarism is like stealing an author’s wallet.” At the time, my friends and I were somewhat skeptical about our teacher’s statement, as it wasn’t easy to see the connection between copying and destroying an author’s income stream. Amazing, but almost 25 years later, I think of Mr. Jadwick and his statement every time I see something about illegal file downloading or some other form of copyright infringement.
As both a producer of content and someone who helps broadband operators jump the technical hurdles of acquiring content from other producers, I have become especially sensitive to this issue over the past few years. With the rise of technologies that make it easy for anyone to digitally copy content and then distribute content with the push of a button over the Internet, it is no wonder that copyright infringement is regularly featured in the mainstream press.
So, I am going to provide a real high-level view of why content protection is a necessary part of any broadband operator’s business.
But first, let me explain a little about Viodi’s background, as I believe it will be relevant to my comments about content protection. Viodi’s primary focus is helping independent telcos navigate the wonderful world of video. As such, we believe it is important to educate the industry and we have several efforts underway from our twice-monthly newsletter to conference participation and organization.
In fact, these efforts have led to us being a producer of content. We regularly create CD-ROMs for groups, such as NTCA, that synchronizes the audio of presenters to their PowerPoints. The information on these CD-ROMs are quite valuable and it is important to Viodi and the organizing groups that this content not be devalued through widespread piracy.
We also help telcos acquire content, especially major studio-type content. Working with the major studios, particularly for what is called “hotel or hospitality window” content is the most onerous, in terms of concerns about digital piracy. We will focus on the content protection needs that result when working with the major studios for the rest of today’s presentation, because, to paraphrase the song, if you can make it in Hollywood or New York, you can make it anywhere.
Canary in the Coal Mine
When we deal with an entity that desires to distribute content over a broadband network, we require that the client be able to satisfy the following requirements of the studios.
- Solid financials
- A marketing plan that will drive buy-rates (i.e. revenue)
- A Content Protection Plan (and the follow-through to implement the plan)
These are not ordered by priority, as they are equally required. If one of these elements is missing, then we will not facilitate an introduction to a studio. If the client is willing, however, we can help the client to do whatever is necessary, such that they can be positioned to have successful contract negotiations.
So, the first element required is a sound business plan and the financial wherewithal necessary to successfully execute the business plan. This sounds pretty basic, but the studios are regularly bombarded from companies ranging in size from start-ups to multi-billon dollar behemoths. The studios have been burned before by promises of millions of eyeballs and scores of new dollars. Because the opportunities literally come to them, the studios have the ability to carefully pick and choose their customers.
Another critical requirement for a broadband operator that wants studio product is the ability and the desire to actively promote and market the studio’s product. Most of the studio’s marketing budget is spent by the time it gets to the window when it can be electronically distributed. Therefore, they look to the operator to find creative ways to drive buy-rates. Increased buy-rates lead to more revenue, which leads to fatter bonuses for the studio folks; pretty simple math, really.
The last element, and the one we are talking about today, is the importance of content protection. Content protection is like quality. It is something that has to be the essence of a company’s being. I would even go so far to say that security, which is really what we are talking about, is to this decade what quality was to the 80s. Again, we do not go to the studios until we can be assured that the client has a comprehensive content protection plan.
Part 2 of this article will appear in the next issue.
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