FICCI, along with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), has recently released a report, Entertainment and Media: India going Digital, on the digital medium in India, focussing on a Digital Rights Management System (DRMS).The study highlighted that an efficient DRMS is essential provide a boost to the rapidly growing digital entertainment and media industry in India. Additionally, the DRMS should enable the management and protection of digital content, and allow for technology-agnostic, forward looking and stringent regulatory policies that are equally at ease with self-regulation and cross-industry agreements.
The study cites that the increased role of digital media has given rise to new issues and complexities, which need to be addressed by Indian stakeholders. Foremost on this list is the issue of copyright, which has affected the exploitation of digital content across new media. Technology issues, prominently relating to the interoperability of equipment and devices at the consumers’ end, also need to be addressed. The study also talks about digital piracy, which though is at a nascent stage currently, will pose a greater challenge in the future with the proliferation of digital media among Indian consumers.
With the advent of newer digital infrastructure and platforms in India and increased penetration of broadband and mobile networks, it is now possible to broadcast, stream and download digital content from diverse platforms to a variety of devices. This development has opened up new opportunities for content providers to monetise their content through various digital media and devices.
However, this development is adversely affecting competing revenue streams. For example, the digital/mobile spending streams is competing with physical home video sell-through and rental, physical recorded music sales, physical book sales and purchases of magazines and newspapers. Moreover, traditional TV, radio, magazine, and newspaper advertising continue to compete with Internet advertising.
The study also revealed the fact that companies were forming alliances and joint ventures to take advantage of and cater to the needs of the changing landscape. Broadcasters are entering into strategic alliances and ventures with digital networking and Internet companies and wireless providers to stream programming, both over the Internet and mobile devices. Publishers and search engines are collectively sharing content and selling advertisements in both print and digital formats. Alliances are being forged by technology companies in order to support the expansion of digital and mobile distribution of content.
The study predicts that in the light of these developments, content, distribution and technology companies will continue to form new relationships to take advantage of the growing role of digital distribution in the media and entertainment market.
According to the study, various digital platforms generated USD 690 billion in global spending in 2006. This translated into 48 percent of the total entertainment and media spending, including Internet access spending. During the last five years, the spending on these platforms increased by double-digit rates and high single-digit rates. The study predicts two additional years of double-digit growth and high single-digit growth for the period from 2009 to 2011. By 2011, the total spending is forecasted to reach USD 1.1 trillion at a CAGR of 9.1 percent; with Asia Pacific leading the tally at a CAGR of 13.5 percent.
The FICCI-PwC study also highlights the importance of customer focus as a key differentiator in the future and how understanding the needs of one’s customer and quickly reacting to the changing scenarios will help companies in harnessing the potential of digital media.
Fuelled by increased competition in the market, the market is slated to move towards lower prices. |
