Platform Media Index shows ‘Online Video’ the hottest topic in the press at IBC 2018

‘Online Video’ accounts for more than 20% of share of voice

London(26 Sep 2018)

Platform Communications, the technology communications expert, announces that thePlatform Media Index for IBC 2018 reveals ‘Online Video’ and ‘Media Convergence’ were the hottest topics at the global broadcast industry show – accounting for more than a third of share of voice combined. The Index provides a snapshot of leading media technology trends, moves being made by key industry players, and discussions in the media around the event. 

Mirroring last year’s Media Index for IBC, the most covered topic was ‘Online Video’ with a 20.7% share of voice, followed by ‘Media Convergence’ (14.4%), which surged to second place from fourth spot last year. ‘High Resolution Video’ (12.3%) dropped from second to third, with ‘IP’ (11.1%) taking fourth spot and Cloud/Virtualization (10.9%) rounding out the top five, falling from third in 2017. 

Gay Bell, Chief Executive, Platform Communications, says: “The Platform Media Index offers a great indicator of the topics creating a buzz at IBC 2018. The spread of coverage of IBC makes clear that, in a year when Netflix reported topping 125 million subscribers, ‘Online Video’ continues to drive discussions both on the show floor and in the media.” 

Netflix was the dominant brand in the ‘Online Video’ media coverage, as the Video on Demand pioneer was the primary reference point in the slew of stories on monetization alternatives to the traditional subscription model, new product announcements and services enabling broadcasters to launch their own over-the-top (OTT) services.

“The Index provides a great way to track how industry trends are evolving – seeing which are capturing the imagination and which are falling out of the conversation,” Bell notes. “This year’s results highlight the fact that consumer demands for more advanced TV experiences are really pushing industry innovation.”

Media Convergence was the big mover in the top five, with coverage of major players such as MediaKind (formerly Ericsson Media Solutions) and Synamedia (formerly Cisco Service Provider Video Software Solutions) announcing new products, services and strategies embracing convergence. As with last year’s show and NAB earlier this year, Android TV continues to prompt discussion on what shape the multiscreen revolution is taking. Companies providing the devices, software and overall infrastructure to support deployment of the Google platform drove coverage with product launches and specialist events. 

Topics that fell in the Media Index were ‘High Resolution Video’, which slipped one place, ‘Cloud/Virtualization’, which slipped two spots, ‘Content Security’ and ‘User Experience’, both down one. The big losers were ‘Virtual/Augmented Reality’ and ‘Data Analytics’ which fell out of the top 10 altogether. Although VR/AR could still possibly play a big role in broadcast media in future, the limitations of the current generation of hardware and lack of high-quality content has left the initial hype of 2017 looking a bit premature – especially for those with memories of the 3D TV circus that never managed to pitch its tent.

 

Platform Media Index | IBC 2017 vs. IBC 2018 

Platform Media Index
Ranking	IBC 2017	IBC 2018	Change
1	Online Video	Online Video	-
2	High Resolution Video	Media Convergence
3	Cloud / Virtualization	High Resolution Video	¯
4	Media Convergence	New: IP	“
5	Content Security	Cloud / Virtualization	¯
6	Virtual / Augmented Reality	Content Security	¯
7	Workflow & Media Asset Management	Workflow & Media Asset Management	-
8	User Experience	Artificial Intelligence
9	Data Analytics	User Experience	¯
10	Artificial Intelligence	New: Next Generation Codecs	“

‘Data Analytics’ loss would appear to be a gain for ‘Artificial Intelligence’, as the once hot topic of ‘Big Data’ seemed to morph into ‘AI’ – which rose two places in the Index to eighth spot, doubling its level of coverage to 6% share of voice from 3% last year. Companies that had previously touted their data expertise are now moving into ‘AI’ and ‘machine learning’, which have now emerged as their main talking points – but further growth in coverage appears to be hampered by a lack of concrete examples of products actively using AI already. 

Holding steady in the table was ‘Workflow and Media Asset Management’ in seventh spot – but up slightly in share of voice to 6.7% from 6% in 2017 – while ‘IP’ and ‘Next Generation Codecs’ were new to the top 10. With HEVC adoption still relatively sluggish and the Alliance for Open Media finally releasing its new AV1 codec earlier this year, several high-profile articles and conference presentations on the merits of AV1 versus HEVC buoyed coverage on this topic.

For the full ranking of the top 10 key trends, download the infographic here. For the share of voice graphic, downloadhere.

 

About Platform Communications

Platform Communications is behind some of the most talked about brands in media & entertainment, enterprise, telco, consumer tech and mobile. The team runs award-winning integrated, global campaigns that engage audiences and achieve real business results. Find out more at www.platformcomms.com.