Les stratégies multi-plateformes de BBC
par CARTOON (European Association of Animation Film)
- Internet n'est pas seulement une plateforme de distribution pour la télé. Marc Goodchild explique pourquoi la BBC a compris l'importance de l'interactivité et le besoin de développer des produits spécifiques pour Internet.
Cet article est disponible en anglais.
Over the past 7 years Marc Goodchild has achieved
unique status in the BBC factual department
as a multi-award winning producer of both
linear and interactive content. After winning a
Bafta for ‘Walking With Beasts’ interactive, he
set up the division’s nascent iTV unit, became
the first true 360 exec on projects like «How
To Sleep Better» and «The Climate Change
Experiment» and has continued to produce
high quality linear shows to boot.
At the
beginning of April 2008, Marc joined the BBC’s
Children’s department to head up Interactive
and On-demand production and continues to
play an active role forging links across the factual
community for audiences young and old.
Which is the BBC strategy in supporting
children programmes?
The BBC has a very clear strategy of supporting
children from birth through to early adulthood,
with sites that reflect the varying levels of protection,
computer literacy, independence and maturity
as they grow up.
Which has been the evolution
of creating on-line services?
Back in 1997 Teletubbies was one of the BBC shows
to have its own website. Programmes got websites
because someone on the team was a web evangelist
or because the editor of that show shouted loudly
enough. Over time this smattering evolved into a
‘compendium’ of sites with no overall strategy.
Six or seven years ago BBC started a policy of consolidation. But
most sites were text and still based-programme
support sites, with some games. There
were lots of brochure-ware and vanity publishing.
In 2005 the proliferation of broadband meant
you could add decent audiovisual programmes to
stills and text. Suddenly television got excited and
invented the television on the web. Everyone was
adding hand cranked linear video to their sites. But other sites like YouTube could accumulate far
more compelling content far more cheaply. The
evangelists fought back and started to invent new
forms of rich media experiences – games, interactive
narratives, blogs etc.
Pioneering projects started to break through that
the web was more than a new distribution platform
for TV. Online usage stated to challenge TV figures. A few
breakthrough web enhancements really
showed the power of cross-platform initiatives. But
most web spend was still usually on the margins.
Interactive
finally got a seat at the table. In 2007
a new strategy introduced TV-on-the-web brigade
satisfied with the iPlayer. There was a clear commitment
to low-level programme support for all
shows. There was a clear need to develop web-only
products too. There has been a clear agreement
within the BBC management that some shows
deserve extra programme support.
Are the web sites catering
for different target audiences?
Yes, in 2002 we launched the two channels
Cbeebies and CBBC and effectively established
two distinct digital brands. The 2 websites brought
order and structure to the disparate programme
sites. Now programmes got websites because of
their strategic importance.
CBeebies (www.bbc.co.uk/cbeebies) and CBBC
(www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc) websites enable children
and their parents or carers to interact with us
and each other in a safe, trusted and accessible
environment. The focus is on empowering children
and giving them the opportunity to gain a
deeper relationship with the BBC, the brands and
characters, increasing the value they receive, the
ownership they feel, and the impact they have on
CBeebies and CBBC.
To achieve this, the sites offer
a range of innovative interactive tools and creative
opportunities aimed at all children, of every ability
and background, giving them the space to publish
their own content, thoughts and opinions. We also
provide a dedicated 24/7 news service for children
online as part of Newsround and through the
PressPack section we can actively engage children
in the topical issues that matter to them.
BBC Switch is our third age-specific offer which
launched in 2007 to aggregate all the BBC online
content currently targeted at a Teens audience. All material is checked to make sure it is age appropriate
and external links are pre-vetted. This
service is not promoted to younger children on
Cbeebies and CBBC.
The BBC’s online strategy is considered
as a success. What element can explain
this success?
In a word: iPlayer. It is a Web site that streams full-length
BBC TV shows from the last seven days on
demand. Launched in December 2007, iPlayer has
combined a slick user experience with popular
content to triple its unique monthly audience in
Britain to 2.2 million. That makes it one of the most
successful streaming video services in the world.
Unlike youth-oriented YouTube, the iPlayer has
also been a hit with an older audience. The BBC
says more than 60% of its viewers are 35 or older—
and they stay online for almost 30 minutes per
session. That’s a powerful draw for advertisers,
who have long sought to capitalize on the public’s
growing interest in online TV, especially among a
well-heeled adult audience.
The BBC iPlayer is well ahead of the game when it
comes to online video. We definitely could see the
model exported across Europe.
Which are the next BBC’s challenges?
The first few months of the iPlayer have also produced
a host of lessons. The first is that the more
impatient nature of the online audience requires
advertising breaks in programmes, as well as the
ads themselves, to be only about one-quarter as
long as on TV. Ads also need to target specific audiences. For
now, advertisers are paying about a 50%
premium for Net ads on a cost-per-viewer basis. But with fewer time slots available than on T V, the
revenue to broadcasters may not be enough to
make online services sustainable.
Another unexpected challenge has come from
Internet service providers, which have complained
bitterly about the amount of bandwidth being gobbled
up by the iPlayer’s streaming video. As more
people start watching TV via the Net, content providers
should help pay for the necessary infrastructure
(extra switches, fiber-optic cables, etc.) needed
to make video stream seamlessly. Complicating
matters, some ISPs have made their own moves
into online T V, which could lead to a battle between
them and broadcasters to win over audiences.
Both sides will find a way to live with each other. Broadcasters, for example, could cache their content
on ISP servers. That would reduce the amount
of bandwidth viewers use to watch programmes
online. Partnerships between ISPs and content
providers also could limit the investment risk for
companies looking to move into Internet TV.
Cartoon Master Murcia, Spain, April 2008
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