Gazing into the proverbial crystal ball can be a tenuous pursuit but that didn’t dissuade assorted industry execs from weighing in on prospects during a series of online discussions at The Future of Television Conference held this week (11/8-11). Presented by Digital Media Wire, among the sessions were one exploring the future of the post-pandemic TV business, and another focused on industry diversity and inclusion.

The former discussion included insights from such panelists as Jon Steinlauf, chief U.S. advertising sales officer for Discovery, Inc., Miles Perkins, industry manager for Epic Games, Laura Tomlin, chief administrative officer, The E.W. Scripps Company, and Ira Rubinstein, chief digital and marketing officer, PBS. Rubinstein and Steinlauf cited the pandemic-spurred growth of content streaming, reflected in the momentum gained by such services as Disney+, Apple TV+, Paramount+ and Discovery as well the continued strong performance of Netflix, Hulu and Amazon’s Prime Video. Rubinstein shared that PBS is now averaging some 450 million streams a month. Additionally PBS Learning Media, a service for teachers which facilitates remote classroom learning, has doubled in size to 2 million monthly users.

Streaming is here to stay and so are new pockets of experiential business related to initial IP, observed Epic’s Perkins. A half-hour TV or streaming series episode, for example, can spawn a podcast spinoff. Original content similarly can cross over into experiential, yielding the creation of related video games. Content creators and execs, observed Perkins, are going to have to gauge audience expectations relative to content they see at home on the couch or on the run over their phones. The creative community will have to ask itself at all times, he continued, “how do I meet audience members where they are.”

In the new streaming world, subscribers can flee at a moment’s notice, which means that broadcast and streaming platforms are “now in the retail game,” observed Steinlauf. It used to be that promoting a network centered on letting viewers know what day and time a desired program would be airing. Now better and more sophisticated marketing is needed to sell subscriptions with incentives like free trials, having that road lead to paying customers while taking steps to eliminate churn. Steinlauf said that “constant marketing” has become a necessity, accelerated in a new media landscape impacted by the pandemic.

While presenting its share of unique challenges, the pandemic didn’t adversely affect a bullish business stance for those projecting over the long haul. Tomlin noted that E.W. Scripps negotiated a deal--largely over Zoom instead of in person--to sell podcasting business Stitcher to SiriusXM (for a reported price of $325 million) in July 2020. E.W. Scripps on the flip side also was in the acquisitions biz, buying national broadcast network ION Media for $2.65 billion in September 2020. ION generates its revenue by selling advertising in the national marketplace. Combining ION with Katz and Newsy, which also primarily earn revenue from national advertising, increase Scripps’ reach into this resilient ad market as it offers advertisers a larger platform on which to reach their audiences. Together, ION, Katz and Newsy--which comprise Scripps’ new national networks business--will have the reach to connect with virtually every American through free over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite, over-the-top and digital distribution, with multiple advertising-supported programming streams.

DEI 
In the Future of TV diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) session, Bernie Gallardo Lautrette, artist manager, Netflix, moderated a discussion featuring panelists Hrishi Desai, partner, co-head of literary department, ICM Partners; Kim Getty, CEO of ad agency Deutsch LA; and Aisha Thomas-Petit, chief diversity, equity & inclusion officer at AMC Networks.

Thomas-Petit affirmed the DEI is critical to the business bottom line. Without diversity, equity and inclusion, she explained, “You can’t be authentic storytellers.” And such storytelling is essential to the success of content creators.

The implications for society at large also loom large, she continued, in that storytelling over mass media helps to shape how people view themselves--and how others view people who may or may not be different from them. 

ICM’s Desai sees a heightened industry awareness of the benefits realized by working with diverse talent and creating properties that speak to a diverse audience worldwide. He observed, “If there’s one thing the pandemic taught us, it’s that content is certainly consumed globally....and that each and everyone has a background that is important.”

Desai added that diversity and inclusion start at home. In that vein, ICM has made a conscious effort to be inclusive, reflected in such practices as a recruiting initiative that taps into HBCUs (historically Black colleges and universities) for internship candidates who might not have otherwise fully realized that there are opportunities open to them in the entertainment industry.

Thomas-Petit noted that AMC Networks reaches out to not just HBCUs but other minority community outlets, including Hispanic-serving institutions (HSIs)--to find not only those looking to get a foot in the door but also alumni who can take on senior positions.  Furthermore, AMC Networks participates in the industry’s Mentorship Matters program through which showrunners mentor emerging writers of color. AMC currently has five of its showrunners serving as mentors in the program.

Thomas-Petit additionally cited AMC’s involvement in Coded for Inclusion, an offshoot of hiring and networking platform Staff Me Up. Groups such as Hue You Know and Color of Change have endorsed Coded for Inclusion, offering their expertise to highlight underrepresented groups in the industry--including BIPOC, women, LGBTQ+. military vets and people with disabilities--and to provide them with a pipeline to studios, production and post houses.

On the ad agency front, Deutsch LA’s Getty said the she has found several programs valuable, including Double the Line, which has been embraced by the AICP and its Equity & Inclusion Committee. Ali Brown, president of PRETTYBIRD, is the architect of Double the Line which doubles a specific line in the bid form and hires a BIPOC candidate to work alongside the selected role. Agencies and marketers consult with a production or post company to identify lines to double, and the initiative provides access to the commercial ranks for seasoned and experienced production professionals, such as a line producer who has not had the opportunity to work in commercials previously.

Getty also cited the Commercial Directors Diversity Program (CDDP), an educational and real-world content creation initiative established by the AICP and the Directors Guild of America to bring women and other underrepresented directors into commercials and marketing communications,