The Media Report Is SA entering a research wasteland? >< The battle between TV & Digital >< PowerFM’s power punch >< Sailing on the good ship SA media >< Maslow’s internet hierarchy >< Meet the ‘Oprah’ of Africa >< Newspapers under pressure >< Start training now or #1 go live in Orania. >< All this and more in The Media Report, a first from Ornico & The Media Online The Media Report CONTENTS November 2013. Issue 1. The Media Online and Ornico bring you The Media Report - an overview of the year that was and a look into what’s on the radar for 2013. The Media Report is an annual that will tell you what you need to know about what’s #1 happening in the media right now. It is a celebration of technology, the possibility of digital, the magic of mobile, but also investigates the challenges that SA and Africa’s media face as they move towards a new year. 14 Radio’s power punch By Joanna Wright 03 18 TV – Is SA Radio news entering a research 19 wasteland? Sailing on the good By Oresti Patricios ship SA Media By Glenda Nevill 05 Jail. Cartoon by By 23 Khalid Albaih Newspapers under pressure 06 24 Television Bezos buys The Networks vs. Washington Post online. The battle 25 begins Reading habits of By Jon Pienaar tablet users 08 26 Kagiso gets its glow Mxit maintains social on loyalty 09 27 Four new channels for History of the hashtag eTV Maslow's internet 10 hierarchy Twitter & TV – How 30 do they measure up? Start training - or 11 go to Orania Online TV to generate By Gordon Muller $35 billion by 2018 13 34 Television News The Media Report toolbox Ornico & The Media Online THE MEDIA REPORT 02 TELEVISION TV – Is SA entering a research wasteland? There’s been a bust-up between media owners and the official foundation mandated to forge a common currency for media audience measurement. Oresti Patricios (CEO of Ornico) says even though broadcasters walked out of the South African Audience Research Foundation (Saarf) many months back, it doesn’t mean the debate shouldn’t be kept alive. Ornico & The Media Online THE MEDIA REPORT 03 Is SA entering a research wasteland? The writing could be on the wall Fragmenting to the point where Credible research houses the for independent research that there is no foundation to world over have thrown their determines SA’s audience oversee an independent and weight behind neutral and measures after the National holistic view of market independent industry solutions Association of Broadcasters measurement is incredibly to the measurement of (NAB); the SABC and eTV quit short-sighted, and smacks of television audiences. Nielsen – Saarf in June 2013. The exit is extreme self-interest on behalf a global giant in the sector effective December 2013 and of the broadcasters who have states: “As consolidation followed a discrepancy about quit the industry research body. continues to sweep through the TV audience figures. television advertising industry, and more and more companies The move brings fragmentation Saarf has had its establish a global footprint, the to audience research in this problems and is need for homogeneous country because Saarf has, to multinational audience research date, been the independent gold faced with the will continue to grow.” standard. Saarf oversees challenge of audience measurement for all The shame for South Africa is traditional media, including splintering that the fragmentation of TAMS, the Television Audience media platforms audience measurement won’t Measurement Survey. Despite help the industry at all. Let’s TAMS being subject to an in the wake of put self-interest aside for the international audit with a view common cause of growing to improving any shortcomings, convergence, but South Africa’s media sector the broadcasters walked out of allowing the de together. Let’s work through the research foundation after a the challenges we have without dispute about the credibility of facto measurement abandoning Saarf, which would Saarf TV data. have serious, long-term for media in SA to consequences for SA’s This isn’t the first time there crumble without a advertising landscape. have been disputes at Saarf, which has a fairly long and fight doesn’t make acrimonious membership sense. Read more: history, but it is the most damaging to date. At its heart, Broadcasters going off into their Attitudes soften on media Saarf research is all about own cartel to do own audience research dispute, by Tony underscoring efficiency of research doesn’t make sense - Koenderman in Finweek. media advertising investments. what advertisers need is By finding a common currency independent, credible research Saarf announces new that enables the comparison of that offers a global view of the benchmark for media disparate media, Saarf enables media landscape. They don’t consumption at The Media marketers to compare the need more partisan research. Online. efficacy of advertising investments in different media. Regardless of the digital Saarf has had its problems and television revolution, TAMS is faced with the challenge of remains a standardised global splintering media platforms in measure, and a common the wake of convergence, but currency to measure the allowing the de facto effectiveness of investments measurement for media in made in TV campaigns. South Africa to crumble without a fight doesn’t make sense. Ornico & The Media Online THE MEDIA REPORT 04 Jail By Khalid Albaih TELEVISION TV Networks vs. Online. The Battle Begins They call themselves “cord cutters”, and it’s a trend that has US television networks worried. How long until it happens here? By Jon Pienaar Ornico & The Media Online THE MEDIA REPORT 06 TV vs Online. The Battle Begins The young adult demographic, Yes, it’s illegal, both to post (The name ‘cord cutters’ is who have grown up with what videos and to download them, perhaps a misnomer, as much can only be called a glut of but many people do it, and if US domestic broadband is entertainment, now perceive US you want current series and delivered via fibre, so in fact the cable television as too Hollywood blockbusters, all you only thing being cut is the expensive, and not providing need is a broadband connection subscription to the TV bouquet. much that they can’t obtain and some client software on Well, it does have a nice ring to elsewhere. In fact, unless you’re your computer. Oh, and some it!) big into news or sports, it’s good firewall and anti-virus possible to get just about software won’t be amiss, as Admittedly, broadband internet anything you want online, security experts warn that P2P access is relatively cheap in either legally or illegally. software could open up ‘holes’ most US centres, compared in your system. with SA, so it’s a trend that is If it’s quick entertainment or yet to catch on here in any great even catch-ups on reality numbers. Only the tech-savvy television you want, there’s Torrenting have figured out how to bypass YouTube. For movies and series the DRM restrictions that lock there’s Netflix, Hulu, and a copyright media out most other countries. But couple of other new services. is illegal, but that it’s a trend that will grow, and Netflix currently streams to local broadcasters need to be 37,6 million subscribers hasn’t stopped aware. worldwide. Hulu has over 4 million subscribers, and claims millions of people As broadband rolls out in SA, to have streamed over a billion the trend will grow, and many videos in the first quarter of from doing it. people will join the growing 2013. Hulu subscribers have group of local ‘cord cutters’ — doubled in a year, although that Currently, 5% of all US or should we call them “dish is small fry compared to the 5 broadband subscribers ditchers”? Netflix and Hulu million-plus subscribers that exclusively use these online offer subscriptions at US$7.99 Netflix gained in the same video services for their TV per month (around R70.00), period. viewing, according to a survey payable by credit card, and the commissioned by the Fiber to BBC iPlayer provides free Then there’s the “dark side” - the Home Council. access to all BBC TV and radio peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing, programming for the past week whereby sites like Piratebay Some 40% of broadband users (although certain programming, host software that allows get at least some of their TV like “Match of the Day”, is not computers to create a from online sources. The survey available due to rights issues, worldwide network that hosts found that the swing away from even in the UK). With a little files in the form of torrents - conventional TV is more proxy-bypassing software, large files broken down into marked in the under-35 age- anyone with a broadband smaller pieces and shared in a group, with 70% of broadband connection of 4MB/s or over somewhat haphazard manner. subscribers getting some of can get streaming video content Last year, the mini-series Game their TV from online sources, superior to what local of Thrones was downloaded and 13% having ditched cable broadcasters can provide. 3.9-million times, via torrenting and broadcast TV entirely. site Piratebay. Ornico & The Media Online THE MEDIA REPORT 07 Kagiso gets its Glow TV on The black owned media company Kagiso launched a new free-to-air channel in October 2013 on OpenView HD, a satellite sister company of the free-to-air e.tv. Speaking to Business Report Kagiso Media CEO Mark Harris said: "It’s the logical next step for Kagiso Media.