Convergence monitor: Enterprise mobility
This is the second in a series of global surveys aimed at understanding preferences and interest to buy and use various converged services. Enterprise mobility focuses on workforce use of mobile technologies and perceived demand for converged enterprise solutions in the near future.
Going green: Sustainable growth strategies*
There are two main drivers of sustainability movement in the technology industry, both economic rather than altruistic: the potential to increase revenue through the increasing demand for greener products and services and the desire to decrease expenditures by reducing energy consumption. This report indicates that increasing sustainability will require collaboration all along the supply chain and that unique opportunities exist for both hardware and software companies.
How consumer conversation will transform business*
How consumer conversation will transform business examines how new technologies and new methodologies are transforming a new source of consumer data--the customer's thoughts, intentions and innovative ideas obtained from conversations found in blogs, message boards, phone calls and other interactive media--into a dramatically deeper understanding of consumers.
Show me the money: Strategies for success in IPTV*
As everyone races to be the consummate provider of entertainment and communications to the customer in the home, IPTV is regarded by some as the silver bullet to achieving this goal. However, those choosing to launch IPTV services are entering an already crowded and competitive market characterised by established players and ongoing innovations. This report examines the different drivers and strategies that companies can employ to achieve this type of success. Global entertainment and media outlook: 2007-2011
The eighth edition of our comprehensive industry forecast of spending, and the key issues and developments that will drive growth in 14 entertainment and media sectors. Convergence monitor: The digital home
For this survey about the digital home, our first of a series of global Convergence monitor surveys, PricewaterhouseCoopers surveyed 8,000 of our employees in 17 countries. The report discusses some key findings, including what consumers are willing to pay for, how they access content, the importance of security and customer service. How to capitalize on lifestyle advertising in a customer-centric world*
PricewaterhouseCoopers believes that we are experiencing a technology-driven social renaissance that is creating unprecedented opportunities for the advertising industry to execute its core principles in powerful new ways. We believe that instead of attempting to position themselves alongside the segmented lifestyles of mass audiences, advertisers must now aim to position their brands within the lifestyles of individual consumers. This is an opportunity that we term Lifestyle Advertising. Breaking down walls: How an open business model is now the convergence imperative*
PricewaterhouseCoopers believes that a new and open business model is the way to manage convergence, realise its potential and enable sustainable shareholder value. Our analysis shows that many companies involved in the technology, content and distribution sectors are not achieving returns on capital investments and are struggling to create shareholder value. The old business models are impeding value creation in this rapidly changing convergence environment. This report defines four open business model attributes for companies to consider as a way to produce shareholder value beyond the limits of what we know today.
Shaping digital convergence through mergers & acquisitions
There’s no doubt that convergence is causing great change—partnerships, alliances, and M&A deals are all on the rise. But is convergence really the driver? In order to shed some light on this question, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and the Economist Intelligence Unit asked executives across the world what they thought about this and other related questions. The result is this recent report.
The rise of lifestyle media: Achieving success in the digital convergence era
This report analyses the impact of convergence on the video content, communications, advertising, and audience measurement industries in the Untied States. PricewaterhouseCoopers' goals in this report are to inform and stimulate discussion among industry participants about the ways in which convergence will create and destroy value.
Internet protocol transformation: Beyond the triple play
This report, the third in PricewaterhouseCoopers' Convergence series, focuses on wireline carrier IP transformation strategies. It is expected that wireless service providers and cable operators will undergo a similar transformation in the near future and an examination of carrier strategies will provide them with valuable insights.
Redefining intellectual property value: The case of China
China's unique relationship with countless multinational companies (MNCs)—as both a global manufacturing partner and an emerging competitor—is altering established conventions about the definition, role, and protection of intellectual property (IP). The rapidly growing capabilities of Chinese manufacturers, combined with their rapid appropriation of IP (through both legal and illegal means) are having an unprecedented impact. The effect is transforming the structure of supply chains, the segmentation of value chains, and the relative value of the hard and soft constituents of products and services.
2006 patent and trademark damages study*
Damage awards are increasing and trial tactics are changing. Intellectual property (IP) often determines the survival of a business. In light of global competition, shorter product life cycles, and easier access to information, patents and trademarks are now major barriers of entry for companies to differentiate a product or secure a niche in the market. Therefore the desire to protect IP—which also includes copyrights, trade secrets, and technical knowledge—continues to result in record numbers of infringement actions, with patent and trademark actions among the fastest growing filings in the court system.
Contemplating the next move [pdf, 93kb] At the heart of fixed and mobile convergence is the concept of the next generation network, simplifying and delayering networks with the goal of enriching the service portfolio, lowering capex demands, and improving efficiency. As the technology is still evolving, operators need to take a pragmatic approach before embarking on the path to transformation.
Synchronising for results [pdf, 73kb] The order-to-cash cycle shapes many key touch points—installation, provisioning, billing—that directly determine the customer’s own experience with and perception of a communications company. A company that succeeds in optimizing its order-to-cash cycle stands to gain major benefits: increased revenues, minimised costs, and maximised margins.
Content security [pdf, 70kb] As communications companies move into a multiproduct environment, they are signing deals with content owners—who, in turn, expect and demand that their content be safeguarded while it is on the network. Digital content opens up new vistas of opportunity for operators—but also brings risks and responsibilities that lie outside the traditional scope of their business and capabilities.
The perspective interviews from the cable operators [pdf, 1.9mb] Cable operators are rapidly moving away from purely delivering television and movie channels to customers. They are shaking up the communications and media markets around the globe as they seek to improve their financial and operational performance by delivering broadband voice and data applications, owning and distributing unique and exclusive content, and becoming the provider of choice to more consumers.
In the following interviews, we hear from executives at three cable companies that represent differing markets and stages of evolution. Their opinions and outlooks offer some interesting insights as to where this market is headed.
Customer centricity [pdf, 1.1mb] For years, telcos have talked about being focused on customers, but organisationally they remain aligned internally along separate product silos. As consumers have more choices and new competitors enter the market, success in telecoms will be determined by those companies who align themselves around customers’ current and future needs.
Entertainment industry: The content-conduit conundrum
The next five years will herald the continued establishment of an end-to-end system for entertainment and media content distribution, marketing, sales, and monetisation. Entertainment executives must determine fundamental business issues of this emerging value chain “ what content to produce, where and how to market it, and how to monetise it. New distribution channels are inspiring new content and revenue streams. But it’s a precarious environment in which sometimes, the new cannibalises existing content and devours consumer spending.
Can user-generated content generate revenue?
Three years ago, there was no MySpace. Today, Alexa Internet, a subsidiary of Amazon.com that provides information about web traffic, rates it as the fourth most popular English-language website and the sixth most popular site in the world. The number of MySpace accounts reached 100 million in August of 2006, and according to CNN, MySpace adds 230,000 new members every day. Similarly, SecondLife, a subscription virtual world that went public in 2003, now has one million subscribers. Even more dramatic is the growth of YouTube, founded in 2005. Every day, visitors view one hundred million clips and upload 65,000 new videos. Nielsen/NetRatings reports that YouTube has 20 million visitors per month.
For traditional media companies, it’s not the same old song
A decade ago, entertainment giants responded to emerging communication technologies with some detachment. They tried to satisfy the digital customer mostly with basic company portals and product websites. Even as they watched the music industry’s struggle with peer-to-peer downloading with increasing foreboding; many estimated that they were still years away from the same fate overtaking them.
Technology industry outlook and trends
What are the nine trends shaping the technology industry at a rapid pace? Listen to Bill Cobourn, Global technology leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers, discuss these and other pertinent issues currently influencing the sector.
Interviews and insights to 2011
Leaders in PricewaterhouseCoopers' Global, UK, and Asia Pacific practise discuss the emerging trends and growth occurring in the entertainment and media industry for 2007-2011—based on this year's release of the Global entertainment and media outlook publication. Find out which sectors are the fastest-growing in their region and why.
Consumer research: interviews and focus groups
Interviews from around the world show how media consumption habits are changing. See what consumers are saying about Internet advertising, spending habits on the Web, mobile life and more.
How convergence is impacting today's business models*
Hear firsthand how Fox is embracing convergence and how PricewaterhouseCoopers is helping companies succeed in the convergence era by adopting an open business model.
