V I D E O • A G E SE P T E M B E R/ OC T O B E R 2 0 1 2 40 M I P C O M ( C o n t i n u e d ) Estrella TV’s Weir predicted, “With our primary focus being Latin America, I believe MIPCOM will rank No. 2 for us, behind only NATPE.” Yet, CCI’s Falzon thought that ranking markets was tricky because “greatness is hard to define. When we go and deal with particular areas or genres that are really important… There are markets that are much, much more targeted and much more useful if you define greatness in that way. For instance, NATPE has become important for us because of the Latin market,” he said. But he conceded, “If I were to talk about the general, major conferences, I would say MIPCOM is No. 1, maybe shared with MIP-TV, but because of MIPJunior, MIPCOM is important for us with the kids programming.” Taking a diplomatic stance, Falzon added, “We really need the other markets as well.” Likewise, Miami-based Karina Etchison, Telemundo’s VP of Sales for Europe, Africa and the Middle East, refrained from ranking markets. “What I can say about MIPCOM is that it has become the market in which we meet with clients from all regions including Latin America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East and Asia, among others; that is the great thing about it,” she said. MIPJunior, which precedes MIPCOM on October 6-7, puts a spotlight on kids programming, and CCI’s Falzon finds that “the momentum of the kids arena continues into MIPCOM itself. For us, MIPCOM is really important, [but] we already have a lot of meetings lined up in the non-kids area as well,” he said. Studio 100’s Elmendorff added, “With regards to kids programming, we have observed an increase in the market share for 3D CGI-animated shows and live action programs.” 9 Story’s Commisso has found that “Animated comedies in particular have proven to break through and travel the best…both domestically and internationally.” The issues stemming from Internet rights also crept their way into discourse about MIPCOM, just as they have been finding their way to negotiating tables. “More than ever before we are choosing to watch TV content via the Internet and those numbers will continue to climb, particularly among the younger generations; so this will definitely affect broadcast rights,” said Abraham of Breakthrough. “Throw in the fact that over a third of televisions sold today are ‘Smart TVs’ and have the capability to connect directly to the Internet, we are on the cusp of major changes in the industry…This could be very positive for content providers, however, more traditional broadcasters and operators may be feeling a little less optimistic and must explore new business models,” he said. Venevision’s Diaz remarked, “We are careful not to trample over the numerous overlapping rights that serving multiple media and platforms presents. It has impacted the sales model; we are now selling many programs without exclusivities, which is a major factor in keeping the rights available for maximum exposure. “Thedigital consumptionof content is growing fast, although the revenues for these rights continue to be significantly lower when compared to broadcast. Nevertheless, they have to coexist, and we must continue to nurture the digital media outlets. Fortunately for us, in the telenovela genre, we have yet to see a strong surge in Internet rights; so for now, at least, broadcast rights are not being affected,” Diaz said. Les Tomlin, CEO and president of Canada’s Peace Point stated, “Online is certainly growing exponentially… Increasingly, channels are asking for Internet rights in their respective territories, and where possible we grant those rights.” As eOne’s Fraser put it, “Buying patterns are ever evolving as are the opportunities opened up to us by the Web. Now especially distributors and broadcasters need to revisit what they are buying and selling constantly. As we represent a large number of producers globally, we truly spend a lot of time making sure that our digital exploitation strategy complements our linear one and vice versa.” “Everybody now over the last few years is really paying attention to the screening rights and the Web rights, and trying to figure out how to negotiate rights. It’s affecting the market. The TV people claim it’s impacting them, so they want those rights, but at the same time, it affects the DVD rights people, so they want the rights,” said CCI’s Falzon. “Distributors have been fighting and negotiating the rights separately even though buyers want the rights included. We look at it as a separate market altogether,” he added. A+E’s Zuccarelli commented that, “As a forward-thinking company, digital media distribution is a big part of our strategy and business. We own all-rights for most of our catalog, which allows us to be competitive in the digital media arena.” Commisso of 9 Story also sees these rights as potential opportunities, saying, “There is a proliferation of digital and VoD players who need content. Broadcasters are alsoencompassing these rights. We see this as an opportunity for independent producers.” Telemundo’s Etchison was upbeat too. “Internet rights have already begun to affect our broadcast rights, in a positive way that is. We either structure a sale to include these rights or we treat them as a separate window. Each case is treated accordingly and this has worked well for us. It is a window that is still evolving, therefore we are going to have to be flexible and at the same time protect these rights to the best of our ability.” But Rutherford of Tricon cautioned: “We have to be conscious of the rights granted to broadcasters as there is more opportunity to maximize our revenue by keeping certain rights. Internet and VoD platforms are increasing worldwide, so we’re capitalizing on the various new mediums.” These new rights certainly seem to be tricky to negotiate. “With the proliferation of broadcasters’ OTT and catch-up services, we are seeing more and more stations looking to try to acquire digital rights at the same time as TV rights, so we are having to balance these demands with opportunities presented by digital-only platforms,” said Power’s Waddell. On a positive note, she added, “Though to date we haven’t experienced a situation where the license of Internet rights have compromised our ability to sell linear broadcast rights.” Said Estrella’s Weir, “We own all rights to our content, so we can carefully choose the best way to window our deals in order to take advantage of multiple rights opportunities — whether VoD, Internet, mobile, cable, [or] broadcast. We have no restrictions.” When execs aren’t busy discussing these and other complicated issues at MIPCOM meetings, there will be plenty of other activities to keep them occupied. This year, MIPCOM has teamed with Telefilm Canada and Canada Media Fund to present “Canada Country of Honour,” which will include screenings, a co-production match-making event, co-production case studies in drama, factual and documentary, keynotes from Quebecor Inc.’s Pierre Karl Péladeau and Bell Canada’s Wade Oosterman, and more. “Canada is a leading country for the export of programs of all genres,” said Garaude, explaining the decision to focus on that country. More than 230 Canadian companies will turn out for the MIPCOM this year. This year is extra special for Canadian company 9 StoryEntertainment because it is celebrating its 10th anniversary and “moving to a far larger stand,” Commisso said. A+E Network’s Zuccarelli expects this MIPCOM “to be even more successful [than in the past] since Nancy Dubuc, president of Entertainment and Media for A+E Networks, and Bob DeBitetto, president and general manager of A&E Networks and BIO Channel, will be in attendance.” Dubuc will lead an inaugural “Women in Global Entertainment Power Lunch,” a senior-level networking event for women executives to be held on Monday. SA (Continued from Page 38) Cesar Diaz, VP of Sales for Venevision International Karina Etchison, Telemundo’s VP of Sales for Europe, Africa and the Middle East Marielle Zuccarelli, managing director of International Content Distribution for A+E Networks
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