Platform Media Index: Online and High Resolution Video take center stage at NAB

Platform tracks and measures coverage of the major trends at NAB Show 2017, analyzing 40 key media titles

London(12 May 2017)

Platform Communications, the media and technology communications expert, today announced the results of its second Platform Media Index, identifying the hottest topics reported on by the press at NAB Show 2017 (Las Vegas, April 24-27, 2017).

The media coverage was dominated by the all-pervading effect of ‘Online Video’ (28%) and ‘High Resolution Video’ (20%). ‘Data Analytics’, ‘Workflow and Media Asset Management’ and ‘Virtualization’ rounded out the top five topics covered during and around the show each scoring just above or below the 10% mark.

‘Online Video’ was unmistakably the talk of the Las Vegas show floor, taking over a quarter of the total share of voice in the index. With research showing one in five American homes with over-the-top (OTT) TV are now paying for three or more streaming services (Voice of the Connected User Landscape, 451 Research), this is clearly a top of mind issue in the industry. A core driver of the NAB Show coverage was Netflix’s announcement of its first licensing deal in China with iQIYI, one of the country’s leading video-streaming platforms.  

Similarly, consumer demand for high-resolution, higher quality video content such as UHD and HDR continued to drive media interests – underlined by the widespread press coverage of NASA’s live 4K stream from the International Space Station. Colin Dixon, Founder and Chief Analyst, nScreenMedia, noted that while Ultra HD was the featured video technology in previous years: “At this year’s show, high dynamic range (HDR) moved to center stage. From production, to streaming, to the television, the industry is working to fill the holes in the value chain of delivery.”  

Almost half of all the coverage (48%) Platform recorded was focused on OTT, streaming, and high resolution-based announcements – reinforcing why they are no longer considered solely value-added services but instead, fundamental core offerings in their own right.

“Having experienced every NAB Show for the past 18 years, it’s been fascinating to see how the biggest trends driving the conversation on the show floor have evolved. Back in 1999, we were at the cusp of the digital age, video streaming was starting to attract attention and MPEG-2 was about to become the defacto video standard. Yet while technology continues to change and transform the way we watch media, the biggest change is the consumer, both in their demands for TV Everywhere content and their increasingly savvy methods of consumption,” says Gay Bell, Chief Executive, Platform Communications. 

“The results of our second Media Index further emphasize the incredible journey that our industry has undergone and how the impact of connectivity, IP and the cloud is influencing every sector that our clients, partners, analysts and media are working in,” she adds.

Other key findings: 

• “Data will play a very important role in the future of television”:BAMTech CEO Michael Paull outlined the importance of data and analytics in his keynote at NAB Show, stating: “Building more sophistication in data analysis will be critical.” The topic ranked third in the Platform Media Index, illustrating how using data more effectively will enable content providers to super-serve their customers. 

• “A larger than usual number of vendors were highlighting their various partner ecosystems at the show”:The index’s ‘Workflow and Media Asset Management’ category, perhaps surprisingly, also featured just below ‘Data Analytics’ in fourth place, primarily driven by operators announcing numerous strategic partner announcements at the show. Ron Hendrickson, Managing Editor of Broadband Technology Report, suggested this could be a possible reaction to “a very fluid standards/best practices environment in the OTT and UltraHD worlds.”

• Virtual and Augmented Reality – a real future?: Despite pre-show expectations there was limited overall coverage of ‘Virtual and Augmented Reality’. The topic recorded just 7% of the NAB Show coverage tracked. 

For the full ranking of the top 10 key talking points, download the infographic here. 

 

About Platform Communications

Platform is the expert media and technology communications agency. We are the team behind some of the most talked about media and technology brands. 

Platform designs and executes custom global communications programs using a blend of industry expertise and proven strategies. As award-winning specialists in media and technology, we use our deep understanding of these industries – and the crossover areas between the two – to fuel strategic consultancy, message building and thought leadership activities across a range of communication channels.