Multi-multi screens in exploding world of TV
And with thousands of TV content buyers due to attend this year's 23rd influential MIPCOM audiovisual trade show kicking off on Monday, there should be something new for the world's couch potatoes.
“I believe this is the most exciting time for the content and creative industries,” said Paul Johnson, television director for the show's organisers Reed MIDEM.
Loads of new-style shows will be up for grabs at the five-day MIPCOM, including new short-form entertainment for the emerging mobile and Internet TV markets.
Programmes too are growing greener as concerns about global warming push them into primetime.
And the divide between the international movie and TV worlds is becoming blurred as video-on-demand (VOD) gains momentum and frees viewers from programming schedules. As a result, the world's largest audiovisual and digital entertainment content trade show is expected to be the largest ever.
A total 13,485 participants and 4,251 buyers were signed up to attend late September 28 with the final number expected to be higher. Those figures were an increase of 7.8% and 10.50 percent respectively on 2006.
Worldwide, the audiovisual sector is booming as broadcasters hustle to hold on to traditional viewers while winning new younger fans addicted to mobile phones and the Internet.
Multi-platform entertainment remains the buzzword as TV continues to migrate to an ever-growing number of devices, often portable, that include the ubiquitous mobile phone.
But the newest boys on the block are creating the biggest stir.
Mighty Internet operators AOL, MSN and Yahoo, social-networking websites like MySpace and YouTube, and emerging Internet-TV services Joost and Babelgum are all vying to capture the new multi-tasking generation of consumers.
“If you look at the younger generation, so many of them don't watch television in the classical way,” noted Mike Volpi, head of global Internet-TV service Joost, in an interview with MIPCOM News.
“They multi-task and they often have a laptop with them while they are watching – they may have four or five chat windows open and be watching YouTube at the same time,” he added.
Volpi will be one of MIPCOM's most anticipated speakers at the show. Others include the CEO of America's powerful CBS Corporation, Leslie Moonves, cinema giant United Artists’ CEO Paula Wagner, and Indian media magnates Subhash Chandra and Ronnie Screwvala.
While this will be the first time that Hollywood and Bollywood come out in force together at the TV festival, India will have the spotlight to itself at the opening as the country of honour.
Over 94 of India's leading entertainment companies and 231 participants will be promoting the country's flourishing TV markets, one of the fastest growing in the world.
Among Asian attendees will be digital entertainment powerhouses Japan and South Korea, both among the top 10 exhibiting countries that also include the US, Britain, Germany and Spain.
Eastern European companies are also expected to be on the lookout for new programmes as well as promoting their own growing selection of new productions.
On the glitz front, “Sex and the City” British-born glam actress Kim Cattrall will promote the new World War 1 television drama “My Boy Jack” that also stars “Harry Potter” hero Daniel Radcliffe as Jack.
And Australian actress Gia Carides who starred in “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” will present her new drama series “East of Everything".
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