@MES: The Mobile Threat To Broadcasters

(c) MocoNews by James Pearce

I just had lunch beside Paul Rich, CEO of Bennett Media, which produces content based on extreme sports and women that it sells to broadcasters. It's not on mobile yet -- Paul is here to work out how to get it on mobiles as part of a new media strategy, the ulitmate goal of which is to start its own network. The idea is to use mobile, internet, Google video and everything to cross-promote, and to release free videos for users to pass around and recommend as part of a promotional effort. This fits in with my suspician that the trend of content producers (such as Bennett, or wire services) to launch D2C products is a threat to broadcasters, which goes further since Bennett seeks to use the new media to launch its own network.