2013: a challenging year for operators?

This week saw leading analysts Accenture publish – with some fanfare it has to be said – its predictions for the communications, media and entertainment industries and finds that times are getting tough for all three sectors as they all chase the same consumers and each tries to ‘own the customer’.

Particularly at risk are network operators, who, says Accenture, can no longer rely on churn to sign up new users, but have to actively attract them with better services, better devices and better prices. But they are having to do this against a backdrop where the likes of Google, Facebook and Sony – not to mention Apple – who are not only doing a good job of offering services that consumers want that tread on the toes of operators, but also own the delivery channel and the devices.

According to Accenture, the only way that operators can try and survive is to create their own ecosystems – and that increasingly means partnering.

In fact we are at the dawn of an age of MNO partnerships unlike anything we’ve seen before. From a consumer point of view its great as it means better services and, with the possible exception of overpriced 4G, better prices.

But its not just the telcos that are facing problems. The whole value ecosystem around communications and media is changing. What’s interesting is how this has been driven in large by arguably the three major players in the digital space; Apple with hardware, Amazon with ecommerce and Google with search advertising.

Of course, there are many other organisations such as Facebook and eBay you could look to as well, but it is the way in which these three have leveraged themselves into the media and communications markets and shaped business models around them where we can draw our lessons.

What many organisations operating in the communications and media space need to be asking themselves is “How do my economics fit into this new world, and how do I preserve, protect and diversify my revenue streams?”

Organisations need to consider how they can participate in the new models around them. How can I, as a broadcaster, explore ecommerce services? How can I, a mobile operator, deliver a better and more integrated hardware experience for my customers than I have previously? How can these companies better leverage brands and new content?

For communications service providers, the age old question of voice and text revenues remains, as well as how they finally begin to properly monetise data services. It’s not a new question, but it’s as critical in 2013 as it’s ever been.

Life is now multiplatform. So how do the different screens we have as part of our daily media lives interact with each other and what forms of creativity and technology are required to orchestrate the consumer experience across those screens?

One immediate challenge for the content industries will be how to respond to the potential trend of the all you can eat subscription models moving towards an à la carte world. In the next five years, we will see fewer people spending the same fixed sum with one provider on a monthly basis, as they move to spend more with a number of different direct providers to suit their content needs. All this will be enabled by new “super platforms” that high speed broadband can make a reality.

Alongside this, there will be considerations for advertisers as the pull of more targeted, interactive experiences continues to challenge traditional linear advertising models. In particular, will we reach a point in 2013 where the whole industry can move together? Or will individual media owners still be wrestling on their own with the risks and challenges of moving to a new world of advertising?

The way in which we look at social will also change. Content providers, operators and broadcasters alike will evaluate whether it is simply a form of marketing, or whether it can become a form of actual distribution for getting their content out to their customers.

2013 is shaping up to be quite an interesting – not to mention challenging – year. I’m rather looking forward to it….