In this evolving universe of “TV,” it is the traditional players that are losing share of viewing time to new challengers who operate by different rules. Services such as Netflix Kids and YouTube are growing in popularity, especially as the broadcasters no longer have the advantage of dedicated linear TV services to attract and retain audiences, and to promote and build content brands. And TV players have struggled to harness the power of social as a tool for recommendation and sharing content. While broadcasters still believe better recommendation engines would stop audiences disappearing, kids appear to have few problems finding short-form video content they want to watch online and on mobile devices.
The competition doesn’t just come from YouTube, of course. Both Facebook and Snapchat have pivoted successfully towards becoming video distribution platforms in the last 12 months, while music streaming service Spotify is among the growing list of popular digital services now looking to expand into video, apparently realizing that, for many users, video is now the default format for consuming music. Thus digital media players without a strong video offering may well fear for their future.
DisneyLife provides a template for future digital media services
More significantly for young audiences, perhaps, is competition from cross-platform brands that have built communities around a range of experiences (including short videos, TV shows, books, magazines, toys, and games). The launch of DisneyLife in the UK – which for £9.99 ($14) per month gives users access to a range of Disney content, including movies, videos, music, and magazines – is evidence that a legacy media giant can successfully reinvent itself and remain relevant and valuable to young audiences. Or consider the ongoing appeal of Minecraft (now owned by Microsoft), whose exponents create some of the most-watched content on YouTube, while also buying games, books, magazines, and apps.
Young kids watching cartoons on Netflix Kids, or Minecraft videos on YouTube, or movies on DisneyLife may still consider that what they are doing is “watching TV.” But it’s a semantic hangover, like “taping” a show on a PVR. Broadcast TV as we know it – linear, scheduled, professionally produced content – will remain a vital part of the future of “watching TV.” But, as young audiences are showing us, it will increasingly be just one component of a wider multiservice, multimedia, cross-platform, social experience. Adjusting to that new reality will be a huge challenge for the wider TV and digital media industry in the next decade.