• Webinar Tomorrow: Boosting VOD Revenue and Engagement Through Enhanced Content Discovery

    Even as the range of new over-the-top connected devices brings consumers an explosion of new video choices, incumbent pay-TV operators have continued building viewership of their own video-on-demand (VOD) offerings. But, as Colin Dixon, Senior Partner at The Diffusion Group, a digital media research firm, argues in a new white paper, the vast majority of this viewership has been of free content, effectively leaving pay-TV operators out of the burgeoning rental and download markets. A key reason for this has been sub-optimal electronic program guides (EPGs).

    In a complimentary webinar tomorrow at 11am PT / 2pm ET titled "The Social TV Guide: Boosting VOD Revenue and Customer Engagement Through Enhanced Content Discovery," Colin will lay out both the opportunity and specific tactics for how providers can improved their VOD offerings. Colin will be joined by Sefy Ariely, VP of Sales and Marketing for Orca Interactive, which makes content navigation software. The data and lessons that Colin will share is applicable not only to pay-TV operators, but to anyone offering online and mobile video options trying to drive higher usage and revenue.

    One key takeaway is that social media, whose use has been proliferating, can impact rental or purchases of TV programs and movies. TDG research indicates that 20% of online users have rented or purchased media based on social recommendations. With Facebook usage rapidly rising along with the number of friends each use has, Facebook alone provides an exciting social marketing opportunity. Small steps like emulating Facebook's "I like this" would add new value to current EPGs.

    Another takeaway is that recommending or bundling additional content to interested buyers or rentals can lift usage and revenues. A great example of this is Amazon's familiar "Customers who bought this also bought" prompt. TDG data shows that among adult users, 13% buy products recommended by a web site at least once a month. In addition to driving new revenues, such recommendation tactics can improve customer experiences as well, by enhancing discovery of content people actually want to watch.

    Colin goes a step further by modeling what these types of changes could mean for VOD revenue growth and average revenue per user, showing that even small changes can have a big impact. For any pay-TV operator or content provider participating in the increasingly competitive premium video market, this new white paper, along with tomorrow's complimentary webinar, will offer valuable insights.

    Click here to register for this complimentary webinar