BBC is leading innovation with iPlayer - but ITV, C4 and Sky won't be rushing to catch up
Last week the BBC announced a raft of developments to its iPlayer making it a “freestanding digital entertainment hub” pop-up channels which will provide extended coverage of specific events and the ability to create a personalised television schedule.
BBC leading innovation - but rivals will focus on content
This is not a surprise. iPlayer is normally the leader in tech innovation and the one to try and redefine the media it offers while ITV and the others following suit with their innovations, usually a little while later.
However, what I think may surprise people this time around is that the other commercial broadcasters may not actually be in a rush to follow suit.
The BBC is sitting comfortably because it has one major advantage: the huge current and back catalogue of home created content. Sky and Channel 4 would need to secure rights for content across all platforms which is difficult in the fragmented TV marketplace. C4 and Sky acquire rights to programming which makes this model more difficult.
ITV is in the best position to monetise catalogued programmes. Its business is now categorised as a producer not just a broadcaster, with studio income a growing part of the business. In-house produced shows such as Mr Selfridge have been distributed to over 30 countries worldwide.
But this doesn’t necessarily mean ITV will move in this direction. We have recently seen a gravitation back towards the living room, with one TV screen being the focus, albeit with multiple devices active in the room.
So increasingly we could be using a set top box app to watch content rather than from the app for those broadcasters - leaving the branded channels more time and money to simply make great content.
I think the main commercial broadcasters will not jump after the BBC but concentrate on creating great content.
This is what has been driving viewing figures and creating cultural references in the living room. If the content is taken care of then the technology will come as demand to reach the content at any time increases.
Matthew Eagle is broadcast manager at Carat