Natpe Miami 2017: American hub for global business

There were a significant number of companies announcing the release of different types of digital projects all across the world. Apart from the local and panregional SVODs, OTT, mobile, etc. there were the “big four” Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and HBO Now/HBO Go. And a newcomer from Asia, iflix (Malasia) has been buying content for a possible launch this year in Latin America. These players are helping to erase the cultural boundaries.

In a new media ecosystem, key participants have agreed to Prensario that the content business must be thought in a different way. The big challenge is to implement an ‘intelligent evolution’ in order to continue building the digital assets in their “Golden Era”, but without forgetting the traditional business.

On his first NATPE Miami, JP Bommel, COO & Managing Director, highlighted: ‘We are very happy with the outcome this year, because beyond the digital focus, we are witnessing a more traditional market here: there were 72 countries represented vs. 65 in 2016’.

There were a total of 5000 participants and more than 1000 buyers, with the US domestic market representing 51% and the remaining 50%, international players from Latin America & US Hispanic (21%), Europe (18%) and rest of the world (10%), according to Bommel. ‘All in all, there were more countries and more buyers, more digital and more business’, he summarized.

Andy Kaplan, chairman of the board of Natpe, remarked that this edition has been ‘the best ever’ since the show is held in Miami. ‘The industry is going through deep changes, but the alliances and deals we’ve seen here confirmed that we are going in the right direction. We need to take advantage of this “momentum”.

On the digital side, the big discussion has been towards Netflix temporary download, which has obligated the content providers to re-discuss rights and windows: the user is able to download and watch offline the content on its app with a range of time of between 48 hours to one month. With this decision, Netflix is not an SVOD anymore and could compete with iTunes in the Transactional-VOD world, allowing users to “hold” the content for more time.

Future? Nadav Palti, CEO Dori Media (Israel): ‘We are putting strong emphasis on Mememe Studios, the short content production house that develops ‘3-‘5 and ‘15 shows for YouTube. We have tested 25 channels, and we keep 4; we already have 100 million views. We hope to have 16 channels and 1 billion views for 2018’.

Entertainment? Danny Kershaw, international research manager, K7 Media (UK) offers a close view of the global trends: ‘The format market is becomming more and more complex. We see three clear trends: more gritty/flitzy factual programs (SAS: Who Dares Wins, Banijay Rights), unpredictable realities and uncompromissing game shows (Game2: Winter, Russia)’.

Buyer testimonies? Ruediger Boess, head of programming and acquisitions at ProsiebenSat Media SE (Germany): ‘We like Natpe because we have more time to interact with our providers, especially the Hollywood studios with their mid-season series and the U.S. independent market. We focus on TV series and films’.

 Alexandre Moussard, head of acquisitions M6, France: ‘We are mainly looking for TV movies. Natpe is important to keep us connected between the Mips, and especially to go deeper in the U.S. market’.

Jesus Higuera, head of programme acquisitions, etb (Basque Country): ‘We are back in Natpe after various years. Our channel needs to evolve about content, and Miami is a good tool to be more open to the world and to enrich this evolution’.

Enrique González, corporate general director of Radiotelevision Española (Spain): ‘We are in a moment of financial and audience stability with strong expectations of growth. To the historical series we’ve produced, we are adding this year more contemporary proposals, which will enrich the analysis of the reality we live’.

Three executives of the development and international business department from Japanese leader broadcaster Nippon TV attended the show with a triple purpose: first, to generate co-production and co-development deals; second, to analyze the “ground” for a possible release of a Japanese content VOD; third to expand their programming distribution, heading the next Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

Filipinos players are also very active in the global market: their dramas are growing in Asia Pacific and consolidating in Africa, while they are “the new big thing” in Latin America. But apart from selling them, the key players are also interested in format and co-production deals. The two largest broadcasters, ABS-CBN and GMA have already closed scripted format deals in Latin America and expect to grow in that market.

Nicolas Smirnoff, Alejo Smirnoff and Fabricio Ferrara