The Future of Public Service Television in Sweden a Study on Challenges and Opportunities for SVT Play in a Shifting Television Landscape
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DEGREE PROJECT IN COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, SECOND CYCLE, 30 CREDITS STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN 2020 The Future of Public Service Television in Sweden A study on challenges and opportunities for SVT Play in a shifting television landscape MUHAMMAD DACCAK KTH ROYAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY SCHOOL OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING AND COMPUTER SCIENCE ABSTRACT This study investigates the changing television landscape and consumption habits and the effects on the Swedish public service television(SVT). Recent shifts have amplified the ongoing decline of linear television and were marked by increasing migration of viewers to online video consumption and global streaming services. These new competitors escalate the challenges facing national broadcasters and emphasize the role of having a strong independent public service television that can remain relevant to all its audiences. SVT has been a pioneer in shifting to online and launched its video streaming service SVT Play in 2006. But the service is unable to recuperate the viewership bleeding from SVT linear channels, and reaching younger audiences has never been more challenging. The study presents a literature review and background referring to recent general trends in the television market, to put shifts and disruptions in the Swedish market in a larger context. We also present a thorough background on the Swedish television market focusing on the position of SVT and SVT Play. We discussed dynamics and drivers of recent structural and consumption shifts through in-depth interviews with key personnel from SVT as well as with other experts from different areas within the media and telecom industry. We seek to answer what future challenges and opportunities are for SVT Play and how to deal with those challenges and opportunities. The data collected were analyzed and reported in this study. The main findings indicate a new era ahead of public service heralded by the unprecedented decline of SVT broadcast and the increased consumption divergence in 2019. The study found that SVT Play has a central future role of public service television and should be further empowered to remain agile and relevant, through diverse, differentiated, and personalized offerings, but also through constant engagement with audiences and continuous learning of what they value and demand in a constantly changing media landscape. SAMMANFATTNING Denna studie undersöker det föränderliga TV-landskapet och de nya konsumtionsvanornas effekter på svensk public service- TV (SVT). Nyligen har skiftningar intensifierat den pågående minskningen av linjär-TV vilket märkts i den ökande migrationen av TV-tittare till online video-konsumtion och globala streamingtjänster. Dessa nya konkurrenter trappar upp utmaningarna som nationella programföretag ställts inför och betonar vikten av att ha stark och oberoende public service-TV som kan förbli relevant för samtliga målgrupper. SVT har varit pionjärer i övergången till online och lanserade sin streamingtjänst för video, SVT Play, redan 2006. Men tjänsten är oförmögen att hämta upp de förlorade tittarsiffrorna från SVTs linjära TV-kanaler. Samtidigt så har det aldrig tidigare varit svårare att nå de unga målgrupperna. Denna studie presenterar en litteraturgenomgång och bakgrund med referenser till de senaste allmänna trenderna TV-marknad, för att ställa den svenska marknadens förändringar och störningar i ett större sammanhang. Vi presenterar även en grundlig bakgrund av den svensk TV-marknaden med fokus på SVTs och SVT Plays positioner i denna. Vi har resonerat kring dynamiken och drivkrafterna bakom de senaste strukturella förändringarna och förändringarna i konsumtion, genom djupgående intervjuer med nyckelpersoner från SVT samt andra experter inom olika områden av media- och Telecom-industrin. Vi söker svaret till vilka de framtida utmaningarna och möjligheterna för SVT Play är, samt hur man bör handskas med dessa utmaningar och möjligheter. Den insamlade datan har analyserats och rapporteras i denna studie. De huvudsakliga upptäckterna indikerar en ny era för public service, påbörjad av de historiska minskningarna av SVTs sändningar samt den ökande konsumtionsdivergensen under 2019. Studien har funnit att SVT Play besitter en central framtida roll för public service-TV och bör fortsatt vara stärkt i uppgiften att förbli rörlig och relevant, genom varierade, differentierade och personanpassade erbjudanden, men även genom ett konstant engagemang med sin publik och ett kontinuerligt lärande över vad de värderar och önskar i ett ständigt skiftande medielandskap. The Future of Public Service Television in Sweden A study on challenges and opportunities for SVT Play in a shi!ing television landscape Muhammad Daccak School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science KTH Stockholm, Sweden [email protected] continuous learning of what they value and demand in a ABSTRACT constantly changing media landscape. This study investigates the changing television landscape and consumption habits and the effects on the Swedish KEYWORDS public service television(SVT). Recent shifts have amplified Digital disruption; digitalization; public service television; the ongoing decline of linear television and were marked by television; linear television; OTT; online video increasing migration of viewers to online video consumption; video-on-demand; media convergence; consumption and global streaming services. These new television value chain; video streaming; personalization; competitors escalate the challenges facing national content discovery; the role of public service media broadcasters and emphasize the role of having a strong independent public service television that can remain 1. INTRODUCTION relevant to all its audiences. SVT has been a pioneer in shifting to online and launched its video streaming service In the age of ubiquitous fast Internet and streaming war, an SVT Play in 2006. But the service is unable to recuperate unprecedented amount of digital content can be accessed the viewership bleeding from SVT linear channels, and anywhere at all times and the consumer is surely taking the reaching younger audiences has never been more driver’s seat. In the US, subscription video on demand challenging. The study presents a literature review and (SVOD) grew by 450% between 2009 and 2017, and the background referring to recent general trends in the autonomy that consumers enjoy by choosing how, when, television market, to put shifts and disruptions in the and where they view content stands out as the most Swedish market in a larger context. We also present a prominent driver [25, p.4]. Major studios and aggregators thorough background on the Swedish television market have been trying to recuperate their negotiation power and focusing on the position of SVT and SVT Play. We moving downstream the traditional television (TV) value discussed dynamics and drivers of recent structural and chain through direct-to-consumer (DTC) business models, consumption shifts through in-depth interviews with key whereas distributors have been moving upstream through personnel from SVT as well as with other experts from consolidations with TV networks and major studios to different areas within the media and telecom industry. We secure content rights and sustain their threatened last mile seek to answer what future challenges and opportunities are position [12, pp.62-64]. But the streaming giants continue to for SVT Play and how to deal with those challenges and break their spending records. Net!ix, for example, spent $15 opportunities. The data collected were analyzed and billion on content in 2019, and the estimates are $17 billion reported in this study. The main findings indicate a new era for 2020 [17]. "e company claims that as linear TV ahead of public service heralded by the unprecedented (traditional broadcast TV via satellite, cable, or terrestrial decline of SVT broadcast and the increased consumption networks) took over radio in the 1950s and 1960s, streaming divergence in 2019. The study found that SVT Play has a ‘is’ replacing it, by o#ering on-demand and personalized central future role of public service television and should be entertainment that is available on any screen[13]. "e further empowered to remain agile and relevant, through company also states [14, p.4] that the shift from linear to diverse, differentiated, and personalized offerings, but also streaming video on demand (VOD) is happening all over the through constant engagement with audiences and world and the speed will increase with media and tech giants launching their streaming services. As for the impact on linear TV[1, p.15]. Other major actors in Sweden are of streaming on traditional TV in the US, more than 500,000 TV4 group, NENT group, and Discovery Networks. Yet, consumers abandoned cable TV in the last quarter of 2017, recent acquisitions and mergers between telecom and TV in with current estimates of 13.5 million households not Sweden (tele2-Comhem, Telia-TV4-Cmore) resulted in subscribing to a traditional TV service, while the prediction media powerhouses with more arsenal and integration to is ‘a steady deterioration in cable and satellite subscriptions win the a%ention and time of consumers. over the next couple of years’[23, p.95]. Similarly, SVT Play has been at the forefront of the digital video digitalization and innovation challenge the role of public o#ering of SVT and has managed to secure the third service media across Europe, but also emphasize the need position–in a rather uphill ba%le–after YouTube and for an independent