Videoage International October 2021

V I D E O A G E October 2021 30 Buyers Touch Sensitive Topics (Continued from Cover) John Baghdassarian of OlympuSat Ravi Benshohsan of SPI TLN’s Lily Caputo Electric Entertainment’s Steve Saltman From Los Angeles, Electric Entertainment’s Steve Saltman explained that he “always looked at MIPCOM as an all types of rights market, where I can find whatever right I’m looking for.” Specifically, he said, “MIPCOM has been an excellent market to acquire streaming rights.” At MIPCOM, Lily Caputo, director of pro- gramming at Toronto, Canada’s TLN, will be looking, in particular, for “food, travel, and lifestyle series. Plus, music and event specials, football (soccer)-themed program, and English- subtitled foreign-language shows.” John Baghdassarian, VP, Content Acquisitions and Strategy for the Los Angeles-based Olympusat, will be looking at “fiction series and films. Specifically, drama, detective, crime, horror, sci-fi, historical, and narco.” Viselman was similarly all encompassing: “Our content needs are massive. For film and television, we have designed the platform to have a strong preschool line-up that continues through to older children and family, and the balance is targeted specifically to grown-ups of various interests from horror to romantic comedies to great sci-fi and action adventure, and of course nature and documentaries. We are committed to having a broad content base to serve our subscribers.” Benshohsan is now focusing on acquiring content from Mexico and Colombia “such as novelas, films, and miniseries,” but she will also be looking at other countries for “documentaries and 4K programming.” Saltman explained that Electric recently launched Electric Now, an advertiser-supported OTT streaming service available as a FAST channel, and in AVoD, with a TVoD component. The company’s acquisition strategy is focused on scripted series and films in the action, adventure, sci-fi, fantasy, and thriller [genres] that are advertiser-friendly.” An interesting new aspect of content buying is that acquisition executives no longer trust their instincts, but rely on results from research about viewership. Asked if the desire to acquire certain programs is driven by the data/insight they have about viewership, the answer from TLN’s Caputo was a resounding “yes!” Benshohsan elaborated: “Audience feedback is always crucial to the way we acquire content. Now that there are multiple channels and ways to collect viewer data, content acquisition is no longer purely intuitive. It’s more layered and targeted. We combine the data provided by our partner platforms and our own digital services with the audience feedback we get through our social media accounts to provide our viewers around the world with a more tailor-made experience.” On the other hand, Viselman was telegraphic: “All I can say on this subject is that Klooma has a proprietary method of selecting content.” Olympusat’s Baghdassarian was similarly non-committal: “As more and more viewing is done through digital platforms, we have a better understanding of our audience, thus we are incorporating those insights into buying decisions.” Saltman was the most traditional: “In general, we focus on programs (series and films) that are thematically in sync with our brand. We then add a layer of data analysis based on our viewership to determine what specific programs fit and enhance our service.” As for the kind of rights buyers surveyed are looking for, the answers cover amultitudeof rights and requirements. For example, TLN’s Caputo is looking at all-rights exclusives for Canada and considers both language and territorial options with durations varying from five to 10 years. For Benshohsan things are very different since she is looking at non-exclusive TV and all types of VoD. But the rights have to be worldwide. As for the language, she is looking for the original version with subtitles. However she’d consider dubbed versions or voiceovers to the spoken language, as well. In addition, the length of the rights is not important. “We consider any length of rights,” she said. Viselman is only looking for SVoD rights for territories that include Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Latin America, Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. On the topic of length of rights, he was more expansive. “Usually, the deal for a title will be for two or possibly three years with the right to re-up those rights. For some of the bigger titles we might agree to a shorter window, but that depends on how we intend to share this content with our subscribers. For example, perhaps we are planning a ‘Halloween Event,’ then we might want to double or triple down on horror for that event in which case we might need a very short window for those extra high-profile titles.” For Electric, Saltman looks “for linear, AVoD, and TVoD rights, preferring to acquire those combined rights for all properties we license. However, we are opportunistic and will consider licensing these rights separately.” The rights are for the U.S., its territories and protectorates. As for the length of the rights, “we look for a term of at least two years though we’re opportunistic in regard to term based on the individual property.” Baghdassarian said, “We look for multi- platform rights and as much exclusivity as possible, and territorial.” He then added, “The length of rights is very important, especially when there is language localization involved,” but didn’t go into more specifics. As for the acquisition business model, only Viselman and Saltman wanted to tackle the topic. According to the latter, “ElectricNowwill consider and have already acquired programs under a cash license, minimum guarantees against a revenue- sharing model and sole revenue-sharing terms. We prefer and usually look to license programs under a revenue-sharing model.” Klooma’s Viselman seemed to even enjoy the question: “We have an extraordinary mod- el where we pay a hybrid of MG [minimum guarantee] and rev share. If one (or more) of the titles that we have acquired from a partner goes ‘viral’ and our partner out-earns their MG, then we thankfully and happily move into a ‘per view’ rev share mode,” he concluded. “Audience feedback is always crucial ... content acquisition is no longer purely intuitive. It’s more layered and targeted.”