Create once, use better: Improving ROI on linear channel creation

I spend a lot of time talking to customers about bringing familiar linear channel experiences to an entirely new ecosystem of digital platforms. Folks want to know the juice is worth the squeeze. While the business rationale is nothing new, today — more than ever — media companies want to see rapid and discernible paths to ROI from technology procurement.

With transformational shifts in viewer behavior and wider inflationary pressures, this focus on ROI and speed to market comes as no surprise. PwC forecast that pay-TV revenues will fall $15 billion annually by 2027, pushing traditional media companies to rapidly diversify their distribution models across digital, streaming, OTT, and FAST platforms. But at the same time, broadcasters spinning up new digital channels need to know they can right-size the cost of channel creation and playout against expected subscription and digital advertising returns.

Cost challenges, surging sports rights fees, and resource pressures mean expanding digital reach ‘at any cost’ just isn’t feasible. News organizations, rights holders and streaming services need to find a sweet spot where pragmatic technology investment leads to sustainable business growth.

Bringing live and local news to the digital arena

The value of live and local content — particularly in news broadcasting — is stronger than ever. Audiences enjoy localized, relevant news experiences — and they trust their local providers. The Katz Media Group Study 2024 found that early and late local news programming accounted for 80% of all broadcast news viewing. The same research showed that 73% of viewers trust their local television news compared with 55% for cable network news.

Viewer preference for local news is clear, but amid ongoing consumer shifts toward streaming platforms and connected TV devices, broadcasters need to find ways of bringing unique local news experiences to digital-first viewers without cannibalizing core linear audiences. But at the same time, folks can’t afford to invest the same amount of time, energy, and resources in a new streaming-only offering as they did originally for their core linear channel.

Advances in automated channel creation and playout technologies are addressing this challenge, helping operators spin up and manage a larger volume of streaming and FAST channels — oftentimes leveraging the pconvrimary linear channel — with tailored programming for local and regional audience groups.

Traditionally siloed workflows like live source acquisition, switching, publishing and playout are increasingly coming together in more unified, IP-based systems to help broadcasters design portfolios of unique streaming channels with customized and local news, weather, or cultural programming, including a mix of live and non-live segments. Take the ABC Owned Television Stations as an example, which delivers a range of always-on streaming channels for live and localized news, entertainment and lifestyle programming, providing a new digital option for viewers across local markets. This type of approach can provide digital-first audiences with hyper-regionalized, differentiated experiences catered to specific, and often younger, audience groups.

New methodologies in linear channel creation and customization go beyond localization within domestic borders. Just this year, the BBC announced the launch of its flagship BBC News channel on a range of FAST platforms across North America. Bringing 24/7, live news to FAST with localized advertising and customized programming inserts represents a great example of taking a non-commercial linear channel and monetizing it with ads across new global markets and digital platforms. It’s something that a wide range of major organizations can consider as part of their digital expansion strategies.

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Navigating streamflation with rational technology investment

Although broadcasters are innovating to bring free news streaming experiences to multi-platform audiences, the steady increase in subscription costs, otherwise known as “streamflation”, means consumers are feeling the squeeze. Forbes research showed almost half of US consumers have canceled subscriptions due to rising costs in the past year, rationalizing a pressured subscription mix which already includes an average of three paid services.

The same report revealed 90% of respondents stated they would reconsider their subscriptions if price increases or password-sharing measures were introduced. With sports rights investments showing no signs of slowing and digital ad revenues slower to fruition, folks are questioning how to strike a balance between optimizing profitability without alienating subscribers or making them feel the brunt of rights inflation is being passed onto them.

The underlying technology models used to create and deliver live content need to evolve for content providers to reduce costs and protect consumer price points. Legacy broadcast infrastructure and siloed satellite workflows are no longer adequate for cost-effectively managing a portfolio of revenue-creating digital linear channels and live events. The costs and complexities are simply too great.

Meanwhile, shifting hard and fast to public cloud workflows comes with unexpected charges restricting growth. Media leaders I speak with every day have realized a more streamlined, IP-based approach is the best way to make their content work harder — and go further.

Rick Young, LTNRick Young is a media technology and services executive with over 25 years of experience focusing on the intersection of media and technology, from content creation and delivery to consumer experiences. Prior to his current role leading product strategy at LTN, Rick held leadership positions at startups and global brands.