Media Forecast 2010

With our primary role in TRACK2MEDIA being media consultancy, a lot of people keep asking as to which way the Indian media is heading to in the year 2010. Different people have different reasons to be curious-journalist friends want to know whether the gloomy picture in the media world will continue in the year ahead. The clients in the corporate world are always curious to understand the behavioral dilemma with the necessary evil called media.
Speaking from the perspective of TRACK2MEDIA as a media consulting agency and from a personal standpoint, what media means to us is something which is our forte, our core competency, and certainly our bread and butter. This is also one of the sunrise industries in the Indian market today. I know this statement will raise quite a few eyebrows in today’s context when the television channels are increasingly attempting to get top thin in their hierarchy and overall management practice.
One of the leading group of television channels has only recently hired a global audit firm to measure the employees’ productivity. With the mandate to roll the heads from the top (read all highly paid), restructuring resulted in many of the professionals being shown the doors. If industry grapevine is to be believed, another leading media house is ready with its own liability list. Country’s leading national daily with a financial daily, a news channel and a business television channel has also went through massive restructuring this year.
However, I am still optimistic and this euphoric state of mind has got nothing to do with the measured advertising expenditure in the year 2009. If I go by the Information & Broadcasting Ministry’s clearance to a number of television channels in the recent past, television as a medium of news certainly seems to be poised for another expansion spree. It may not grow vertically and qualitatively, but a horizontal growth and quantitative growth is certainly on the cards.
Even from the advertising and marketing sustenance point of view, on a macro level hardly anyone will argue against the fact that India has become the global hot spot for any global brand. From FMCG to luxury & super luxury, all roads are leading into Indian market today. India along with China has emerged as the market that is critical in any global brand’s strategy for expansion. However, I must admit here that the idea of advertising is vague. And statistics are just that – statistics.
A more critical look into 2010 for the two media platforms leading the way (television and online) will unveil a better idea of where the media is heading to. The rationale of evaluating only the television and online media is that print has apparently reached its saturation point in this part of the world and there is no major expansion on the cards. Even some of the global newspapers tying up with an Indian partner for the local edition over here have put their plans on shelves for the time being. Television and Internet, however, is heading northwards with more players joining the fray.
Journalist friends in the print media may crib that their intellectual superiority and low pay is shameful as against the triple S and one P (Sex, Sensationalism, Silly & Politics) driven television where PYT (Pretty Young Thing) is all you need to succeed. But television will continue to go some distance as against some other forms of advertising, including that of Internet and Outdoor. Television in India may be ridiculed by the serious but minority audience and academicians but it will never go away, at least not in the foreseeable future.
Actually the footprint of television in India is a case study as to how media is consumed and preferred in this part of the world. In terms of marketing strategy, 2010 may see the Indian television shifting from the traditional Ad-Breaks to that of Media Value. The fine blending of advertising and editorial content seems to be on the cards. In the US, this transformation has started long ago starting with the advent of online videos and digital video recorders. These technologies allowed viewers to skirt traditional advertising and put more pressure on media value and brand integration in the content themselves.
With more advertisers ready but cautious with their advertising dollars, the idea of branded integration will emerge as the new buzz word amongst agencies and content providers. Theoretically good content may be the king but advertisers still need to balance the idea of brand image with that of media value. To be precise, branded content may be more readily available, but media value is not about availability but if its right for the brand.
Internet opened up in India nearly over a decade ago and the new kid on the block immediately got a setback. The dot com bubble burst n late ‘90s was inevitable for two specific reasons- with very low internet penetration the whole idea was ahead of its time; and then everybody thought of making a million or two through the cheapest media vehicle possible with no quality content in the kitty. However, over the past decade the increasing internet penetration has ensured that Indian netizens grow phenomenally and online media is a formidable alternative platform to that of television, and believe it or not, even print. If the largest media baron of the world Rupert Murdoch believes the time has come for the paid content online, he has reasons to believe so.
While Internet advertising revenue growth in the US and some other parts of Europe has reached a saturation point of under 5%, Indian forecast of around 20% growth in 2010 sounds too lucrative. This has also led to digital advertising agencies appearing out of nowhere for the first time in the last couple of years. After all, this is where the key elusive demographic that the majority of global advertisers are salivating to get a chance to market is consuming their media.
For 2010, the big question about online advertising is not about why, but where. Google Analytics has suddenly emerged as much in demand as TRPs are there for television. Unlike television where advertising has more of a defined role of where trends are shaping the industry, online is fast emerging as the happy hunting ground for advertisers looking for low cost and high value medium with a global audience.
However, it seems that the lessons learnt from the first round of dot com bubble burst have been easily forgotten here. What is happening once again is that everyone is a content provider whether legitimate or not. In the absence of any defined regulation and the low cost operation, websites have suddenly mushroomed on anything and everything. This makes the job of serious website companies even tougher to produce more quality content and create the right marketing and promotion campaigns to make online advertising a legitimate success. As a practitioner of brand management I feel the online media will see some serious Off-line branding in order to create a market differentiator.
No wonder, when TRACK2MEDIA did a market feasibility survey for its forthcoming online news venture www.indianewsstreet.com, most of the marketers in this part of the world opined that online is a dynamic but fluid media platform. We do understand that advertisers understand the language of ROI (return on investment) and with constantly evolving platforms without rules and metrics, providing a sustainable business model will constantly be a major challenge. For 2010, it will be a year of proving out the validity of online as content providers, updated & instant platforms, and advertisers converge to figure out the right business model in the Indian market.
Television has an edge over here due to platform convergence because this not just ensures having the content available on both online and television, but utilizing both platforms to cross-promote the content and ultimately enhance the viewer experience. For television, online provides a whole new dimension of watching programs from audience interactivity and behind-the-scenes footage to an e-commerce component and social-networking aspect. The marketing strategy of TV 18 is a case study in this context.
If the serious engagement of both the print and television media with their Live Online Site is any indication in 2009, there will be some really serious competition in the segment. Thus, for the media groups with “Only Online” platform to offer, rich content, distinct market positioning and cutting edge exclusivity is the only answer. In the words of legendary Mark Twain, take the roads less travelled by and 2010 is the year for all of you seriously involved with the Online Media. Despite the ups and mostly downs of the media sector in the year, 2010 only promises a better and optimistic media market in India.

Quest for Rit led me to Rit International

Ever since we at TRACK2MEDIA conceptualized the idea of launching out a venture in journalism, there began an eternal quest for issues. Not that there has been dearth of problems in a developing society like India, but amidst the problem of plenty there has been more skepticism as well. What should be the ideal subjects for a news platform aimed at advocacy and activism? There has been deterioration in every walk of public life.

Deteriorating healthcare and education with hospitals guilty of non compliance of mandatory free treatment to patients, Medical Council of India becoming a den of corruption, schools flouting even court directives on capitation, private banks like HDFC hiring goons to threaten credit card holders even when payment has already been made, Pepsi and Cola flowing in a country known for overflowing rivers and milk, poor public transport and infrastructure. You name it and the problem is there.

There have been some inherent dangers as well. There are actually very few subjects where championing the cause does not land you into playing into the hands of vested interests. What has been all the more challenging is the fact that who are the people and organizations on whose behalf we need to stand for. Corporate Social Responsibility seems to be a mockery of the very purpose when the companies producing carbonated drinks & other unhealthy fried foods are championing the cause with one or two healthy snacking options in their portfolio.

Discussion with a journalist friend gave some insight as to how to make the balancing act. However, the advice to look at micro level instead of macro level was more useful. Thank you sir, I know you read my blog on a regular basis. I am thankful to you for reminding of the fact that there can be people and organizations working for a noble cause around us, without much Page 3 kind of social hype. And I know one of them; actually we are working with them as their communication consultant.

I am talking about Chitra Awasthi and her education management group called Rit International. Rit literally means “Truth” in Sanskrit, and my quest for Rit landed me to Rit international. I agree, we should have thought of them much earlier. It is much easy to contribute less, hype more and get away with the awards in the given categories at various forums but what is challenging is to live up to your convictions and don’t let commercial interests come in the way of your ideals. This is where Rit International deserves all the appreciation by the entire team working on the project of India News Street.

I remember when Chitra Awasthi started her first project in Chuckkle.com, it proved to be a tough call from sustenance point of view since the concept was new and they were constrained by the financial limitations. But the kind of response that the project started getting, it was quite easy a road map to make it a paid site. However, she resisted the temptation to make it a paid website since it would have been anti-thesis of giving something back to the society if you charge kids who are interested in the website.

Looking towards the institutions and corporate world for the sponsorship was not that easy. There was no conscious effort of marketing in its true sense as well. However, the corporate world started coming to them for two specific reasons-as part of their Corporate Social Responsibility as well as companies who make children specific products. As part of the long term strategy also the corporates are now eager to adopt our programmes as means of the above stated reasons. So, the marriage of demand and supply, with no compromise at either side, is inevitable now.
Chitra Awasthi and Rit International is a case study in understanding as to how a business project can be sustained and taken to the next level, without compromising with your ethics, values and convictions. And my friend’s advice still alerts me, keep looking for case studies at the micro level and thus you will not only contribute symbolic but substantive to the society. Point well taken sir, that will also be our defence mechanism against playing into the hands of vested interests.

Life is beyond bylines

“Meaningful journalism…..?”, the dirty look by an industry veteran was enough to intimidate a budding journalist in me. However, in the early `90s I could not read anything other than cynicism in the statement. The quest for getting an entry into journalism and earning the byline was so tempting that I failed to understand what really he wanted to convey. A couple of years later, on my first job as a city reporter the editor sounded more curt and straight when he suggested me to better forget about what all crap has been taught in the post graduation course of journalism. It was the love for bylines, strange fascination to see my name published, that yet again forced me to fall in line.

Over the next few years this byline syndrome drove me too far to even think of any real objective behind being the practitioner of journalism. Now as a communication consultant, the same question has yet again surfaced while talking to journalism students with whom I recently interacted as a guest faculty. The world may have changed over these years, and television may have stormed the media business, but what has not changed is the fact that it is the same old byline around which life of a journalist revolves. Television journalists too are a crazy lot for PTC (piece to camera) and Exclusive and even camera persons never fail to remind for mentioning their credit in the story.

It is not that I have now started detesting bylines, nor am I against given byline to a news story. I don’t actually mind even if the story headline says that “A girl has been raped in broad day light” and follows it up with “By Staff Reporter”. At times this credit to the beat journalist may confuse the average readers as to whether it was the staff reporter who had raped the girl. The idea here is to understand the state of mind where byline rules so supreme that we don’t really care for ethics, journalistic or humane. The cut throat competition among media houses and the rat race among the journalists have only deteriorated the objectives for which journalism ought to be practiced.

It seems we are not in the business to defend the cause of the victim but to victimize the one even further, be it a rape victim or someone who just lost the entire family in a blast. The lure of the byline and its by-product, thanks to the new breed of television journalism, “Exclusive” & “Breaking News” as the say, is so tempting that we fail to see there is a life beyond the credit line of the story too. It seems the entire journalistic objective is to persuade and manipulate the victim to narrate the suffering, and in the process relive the agony yet again.

It is not that journalists who are driven by this byline syndrome do gain something personally out of this “me first & me fast” syndrome. Of course, there are a few smart operators who make a fortune for themselves, but for most of the byline hungry lot it is actually love for the profession that drives them far and further. I know a whole bunch of journalists whose families have suffered due to their main bread winner being too involved in a profession where the only reward has been byline, with only a meager salary of course.

I wonder whether they can channelise this passion for something more meaningful. After all, whose interests are they serving if in the name of being ahead of other media and getting exclusives, the love for the profession too takes a back seat. But then that is a state of mind, which defies any rational explanation for even the best of the Freudians. Is there any way out? Can there be any avenue for meaningful journalism? May be yes, only if these dedicated journalists do get a media platform which is truly free, frank and fearless and not bound by editorial policy that is dictated by the advertising revenue.

In my opinion, only advocacy and activism journalism is the answer….and that too with a media platform that is not bound by editorial or marketing constraints. We need a media vehicle where there is no rat race for “me first & me fast” and where byline comes with your contribution to the cause, not by mere story filing. With these objectives TRACK2MEDIA is very soon launching www.indianewsstreet.com.

The news portal is being established to address major emerging issues and concerns, and welcome citizens’ advocacy and activism as well to coordinate and monitor progress in shaping the policies. The partnership would not merely be intellectual (championing the cause through advocacy) but also numeric (a large pool of activists to have a share in policy making). We look forward to actions that are substantive and not merely symbolic. Hopefully, we will make some of the media friends understand the fact that there is a life, and more meaningful life, beyond the bylines.

Why do you blog?

“Why do you write blogs”, asked a friend while driving on way to what I can call a long drive after quite a while. Had it come from someone who would have been ignorant of the pleasures of academics and writing, I would have avoided it as another off-the-cuff query. But knowing the fact that she herself is an addictive blogger and admittedly a competing writer, if not a better one and works with a leading media house was worth reading between the lines. It was not a normal query and I could read something in her sparkling and even more inquisitive eyes.

To the extent of my understanding of human behaviour, often being judgmental through the prism of Freudian psychology, the query was borne more out of an ideological and professional dilemma. Hence I felt the issue had the merit worth a serious introspection. It was all the more so since it seemed to me as if she herself is looking to find an answer. Writers, good bad or indifferent, are often the captive of their own make belief world where self doubt rules supreme.

I have always maintained that a counter question can not be an answer to a question, something that I often tell her too. And hence I had no liberty of choice but to resist the temptation of asking the same question back to her. Blogging, of course, is not as unusual today as it has been a couple of years back. Of late, the new tool in the form of Linkedin has also been flooding my mail box with all sorts of ideas on blog. This query, however, has not been on the innovative and often stupid ideas as to how the blog can be an effective tool in increasing business and how to increase the traffic on the blog. Another school of thought suggesting how blogging can add to your business too did not figure in my scheme of things.

Thus, there has been a simple query yet it led me to introspect as to why I spend so much time on blogging. Is it the pleasure of leisure that drives me to write blog? Or is it the absence of creative avenue to express that I find a solace in blogging? Well, in my case both the options were ruled out. While the process of establishing a communication consultancy company keeps me on my toes, I have also been doing freelance writing quite a bit. Added to this my advocacy and activism on various media outlets and associations are keeping me over occupied.

What instantly I could think of as an obvious reason that drives any blogger to waste his creative energy is his passion to raise issues and voice concerns. I suppose blog is the ideal platform to raise issues as per your own taste and wish. It is not something which is bound by the editorial policy or editors’ wish list. I believe the blogosphere is ideal for advocacy journalism since there is “no time, length or editorial constraints" and information is immediately available to everyone. “Hmmm…”, the friend agreed and wished “as if we all could have got such an ideal platform in the mainstream journalism where you make a living out of writing your heart out”.

We finally reached to a road side food joint for lunch, but a simple innocuous question forced into some serious introspection. The very purpose of life at one point in time that drove me into journalism, advocacy and activism, had taken the back seat over a period of time. It seems to have resurfaced yet again and hence this debate was the genesis of my initiative for such a media vehicle www.indianewsstreet.com, where we can practice journalism for analysis, advocacy and activism. TRACK2MEDIA is coming out with the dream project very soon, and till then it is blog blog….. and then, of course, this habit forming exercise too will continue.