‘Digital has a seat at the table,’ says CTV’s Marcovici

CTV Inc. is not a “TV company” but a media and content company where “digital has a seat at the table,” Alon Marcovici, the company’s new executive vice-president of digital media, said in an interview. Marcovici told The Wire Report that CTV’s hand in the distribution of digital media during the Vancouver Olympics was a “watershed moment” because it demonstrated consumer demand for multiplatform content. “We learned in general that Canadians have a voracious appetite for content, for being interactive, for at times choosing to lean back to consume their media, and at other times to lean forward and be active in it,” Marcovici said. Marcovici said that, in light of the growth in the distribution of professionally produced online media, digital content is not an afterthought for CTV. “Digital has a seat at the table,” he said. “It is a key part of the media business. This is not a TV company. This is a media and content company.” Matt Hornburg, an executive producer and partner with Marble Media Inc., said CTV has shown that it is taking digital media seriously by promoting Marcovici, adding that he was impressed with his management of the Olympics digital content. “As an audience member, I didn’t consume it in a linear fashion. I think the only thing I watched in real-time was the final hockey game,” Hornburg said. Marble Media has produced programming for Corus Entertainment Inc. and is working on two projects with Canwest Global, but does not have a business relationship with CTV. United States research firm eMarkerter released a report in May that identified online video advertising—among advertising categories search, banner, classified, and rich media—as the category that will see the greatest growth in online ad spending over the next four years. The firm projected that $1.5 billion US will be spent on online video advertising in the U.S. by the end of 2010. By 2014, advertisers are expected to spend $5.5 billion US on online video content. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that Hulu, a popular online video service that distributes content from the big American networks, is expected to make an initial public offering with a valuation of around $2 billion US. In Canada, the CRTC has taken notice of the move toward new media distribution, recently issuing new reporting requirements for digital media programming affiliated with traditional broadcasters such as CTV. Some industry observers have criticized the CRTC for issuing reporting requirements only for new media entities affiliated with traditional broadcasters. Marcovici said advertisers are starting to line up for online video opportunities. “We are seeing the ad market have an amazing appetite for video inventory,” he said. “They’re following where the consumers are going, which is premium content and other content presented in the best possible way.” But Martha Fusca, president and CEO of Stornoway Communications, said in an interview that the digital marketplace in Canada has some progress to make before it catches up to the revenue-generating capacity of traditional television. “Digital is still not a money making proposition,” Fusca said. “We went from pennies to dollars and it looks like the situation is improving, but I think it’s still going to take a little time before we can get to a point where producers can afford to be producing content and generating sufficient revenue from content online alone.” Hornburg said he is surprised that it has taken advertisers so long to figure out how to take advantage of online media. “From a content point of view, I’ve always looked at the ad world as being very innovative in how they do things. Everyone feels that they want to be in this space, but they haven’t figured out a way to work with content people to come up with interesting brand strategies,” Hornburg said. Marcovici said Canada has fallen behind the U.S. in securing rights to American programs. “ I think we hold our own,” he said. “We have grown by 55 per cent more video views, this year over last.” Fusca said Canada is behind the U.S. in content production. “We don’t own our own content,” Fusca said. “Canadians are just as capable of developing Hulu-type platforms but what are you going to put on them?” jmigneault@thewirereport.ca

‘Digital has a seat at the table,’ says CTV’s Marcovici

Broadcast | August 20, 2010

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