Thursday, October 13, 2005
Video iPod…The Art of the Deal
Posted by Jason Dunn in "THOUGHT" @ 12:35 PM
The following article is written by an industry insider, anonymously referred to here as Steve Sanders.
Job's announcement of an "experiment" into video content delivery with the new video iPod is nothing new, nothing earthshaking. His announcement of a video iTunes database "experiment" is nothing new. Iger's announcement that they will offer some of the most popular TV shows as "pay-for-play" downloads the day after their appearance is nothing to write home about.
It is the complexity, the simplicity, the elegance of the deal. It is a shift in the time/space continuum. It is a paradigm shift that will effect, change and influence the direction and actions of the PC/CE and entertainment industries. In this instance it isn't about the pixels…it's about connecting the dots!
Jobs has had a beautiful run with iPod and iTunes. It has changed the way ordinary people think about, interact with and use their music. The closely intertwined two have shaken the foundation of the RIAA which is trying desperately to deal with the new landscape, the brave new content world that gives both musicians and their audience freedom of choice.
Eisner and Jobs butted heads big time over the Disney/Pixar relationship. The egos of both parties wouldn't allow a deal no matter how much money was exchanged by either organization. Iger enters and the playing field has changed. Now two parties can discuss without animosity, with no prior history. The slate is clean and both firms can again talk!
In addition to a movie relationship which both parties dearly want and need, Disney has other assets which have huge potential…ABC TV and its years of television content sitting in dusty warehouses. The two - Iger and Jobs - didn't just sit down to make a minor news event splash. They developed a scheme, a plan, a program that could prod the entertainment change. But they didn't play small by rolling out some old tired movies or TV series for people to buy/download onto their video iPods. Iger lead with his best cards, the network's leading TV series - Desperate Housewives and Lost - to produce audience appeal and jump-start a lifestyle change.
In return Iger received? A little bit of incremental TV series content sales. Of course he did! A renewed relationship with Pixar and Disney for future movie, entertainment content. Certainly he did! Jobs has already proven his company/people can control content and attract an audience with huge music downloads. Ok so the Rokr phone didn't rock the world but it wasn't a new announcement rather a somewhat weak product extension that will certainly be enhanced in its future generations. It didn't succeed wildly but it also didn't eat into the iPod/iTunes market.
The joint announcement showed that Apple can now become a content delivery mechanism for video entertainment management, control and distribution. Even if the relationship with Disney's ABC TV is to provide them with an "unfair share" of the download sale profits on the first offering, he wins because he has established the benchmark offering for the future. Want to play in tomorrow's video-my-way, my-time future? Let's talk.
Why should consumers struggle with an on-going payment to TiVo and be concerned that the company is tracking their viewing habits just so they can watch their favorite TV show when they want? Why should they bother with a TiVo or a PVR to time shift and delete the ads? Cripes for $2, less than a latte they can download the show they forgot to record last night and watch tonight, tomorrow night, this weekend…whenever, wherever!
Job's announcement of an "experiment" into video content delivery with the new video iPod is nothing new, nothing earthshaking. His announcement of a video iTunes database "experiment" is nothing new. Iger's announcement that they will offer some of the most popular TV shows as "pay-for-play" downloads the day after their appearance is nothing to write home about.
It is the complexity, the simplicity, the elegance of the deal. It is a shift in the time/space continuum. It is a paradigm shift that will effect, change and influence the direction and actions of the PC/CE and entertainment industries. In this instance it isn't about the pixels…it's about connecting the dots!
Jobs has had a beautiful run with iPod and iTunes. It has changed the way ordinary people think about, interact with and use their music. The closely intertwined two have shaken the foundation of the RIAA which is trying desperately to deal with the new landscape, the brave new content world that gives both musicians and their audience freedom of choice.
Eisner and Jobs butted heads big time over the Disney/Pixar relationship. The egos of both parties wouldn't allow a deal no matter how much money was exchanged by either organization. Iger enters and the playing field has changed. Now two parties can discuss without animosity, with no prior history. The slate is clean and both firms can again talk!
In addition to a movie relationship which both parties dearly want and need, Disney has other assets which have huge potential…ABC TV and its years of television content sitting in dusty warehouses. The two - Iger and Jobs - didn't just sit down to make a minor news event splash. They developed a scheme, a plan, a program that could prod the entertainment change. But they didn't play small by rolling out some old tired movies or TV series for people to buy/download onto their video iPods. Iger lead with his best cards, the network's leading TV series - Desperate Housewives and Lost - to produce audience appeal and jump-start a lifestyle change.
In return Iger received? A little bit of incremental TV series content sales. Of course he did! A renewed relationship with Pixar and Disney for future movie, entertainment content. Certainly he did! Jobs has already proven his company/people can control content and attract an audience with huge music downloads. Ok so the Rokr phone didn't rock the world but it wasn't a new announcement rather a somewhat weak product extension that will certainly be enhanced in its future generations. It didn't succeed wildly but it also didn't eat into the iPod/iTunes market.
The joint announcement showed that Apple can now become a content delivery mechanism for video entertainment management, control and distribution. Even if the relationship with Disney's ABC TV is to provide them with an "unfair share" of the download sale profits on the first offering, he wins because he has established the benchmark offering for the future. Want to play in tomorrow's video-my-way, my-time future? Let's talk.
Why should consumers struggle with an on-going payment to TiVo and be concerned that the company is tracking their viewing habits just so they can watch their favorite TV show when they want? Why should they bother with a TiVo or a PVR to time shift and delete the ads? Cripes for $2, less than a latte they can download the show they forgot to record last night and watch tonight, tomorrow night, this weekend…whenever, wherever!
