Samsung’s Tizen & LG’s Web OS Face New Project Magento Competitor
As streaming becomes a threat to free to Air TV stations, and a massive revenue earner for the likes of Samsung and LG, a new problem has emerged ‘streaming clutter’ with consumers now having to manage multiple apps, platforms, and services.
Then their is the issue of which TV and operating system will consumers invest in for their entertainment needs in the future as streamers compete with free to air.
Will it be via a Google Android, Samsung’s Tizen or LG’s Web OS or a brand new Magento platform being developed by three of the biggest communication Companies in the world News Corp, Comcast, and UK Sky, who are also working with local free to air TV stations on what could be the future of TV viewing in Australia.
Some observers claim that future entertainment and sport viewing will be via a puck, or the likes of Amazon’s Fire Stick attached to a display panel without the need for a TV tuner.
Patrick Delany, chief executive of Foxtel, which is majority-owned by News Corp Australia, claims that consumers are increasingly frustrated having to switch between various streaming apps, keeping track of what they want to watch and which services to subscribe to.
He believes he has the answer with News Corp and key partners Comcast and UK Sky investing millions in the development of a brand new Magento platform which will eliminate a lot of the problems the industry and consumers are facing today.
A recent Accenture Reinvent for Growth survey of 6000 consumers globally, including over 500 Australians, revealed that two-thirds of Australians surveyed feel overwhelmed with the number of streaming services available on their display devices.
Australians it appears are more concerned over streaming issues, than other global consumers with researchers claiming that Australia tracks 11 points higher than the global average, while 55 per cent of Australian households said they would pay for a single app that could provide all the services they wanted on a single platform.
The new Magento platform which is being developed by Comcast in partnership with Foxtel, is cutting edge technology according to insiders, it not only changes the shape and feel of a user experience when streaming or searching for content, it also allows a consumer to bundle all the apps on the Magento platform into one payment Gateway while delivering click revenue for News Corp from the activation of apps and in the future advertising seen on the platform.
Users of the Magento platform will still get access to free channels provided by the Free to Air TV networks whose app will be available on the Magento platform which will compete with LG’s WebOS and Samsung’s Tizen OS for viewers.
The only downside could be Labor’s Federal Government demands, that free to air TV apps appear ahead of other popular apps, this is despite consumers turning off free to air TV viewing because of poor content and a barrage of commercial spruiking, inside programs such as the Block, or My Kitchen Rules.
To achieve this the Federal Government is going to have introduce new legislation in an effort to prop up free to air TV viewing.
Magento that will initially be delivered via a Puck, will allow owners to different ways to watch a sport for example – through paid or free channel.
The free channel could be standard definition sports while the paid for Magento channel is 4K or Ultra High Definition.
Accenture’s business strategy manager for communications and media Lukas Luft told the Australian, “Video streaming revenue growth is slowing down, the industry is facing tougher economic headwinds and business models are shifting from subscription video on demand [VOD] to ad-supported models,”
“This means that platforms need to change and increase users’ watch time to serve more ads. But at the same time, we’re seeing more streaming providers available to consumers than ever before competing for consumers’ eyeballs, which has effectively increased churn.”
Some 42 per cent of Australians have unsubscribed from at least one service in the last 12 months, the research found, while 35 per cent of Australians plan to cancel one service in the next year, compared to 28 per cent globally.
He said Foxtel’s Magento platform, would be an operating system bringing in free-to-air channels, pay-TV channels, and free and paid apps all in one place. It’s expected to launch in coming months.
“This is definitely a solution for the times,” Mr Delany said.
“Netflix might have a great show one week, and Seven Plus has a great show the next week, and Magneto caters for all these things. And if you focus on consumer needs, I think it helps all of the partners together, which is why we have such a great roll call of partners coming in.
“We have got 4.5 million active accounts, which means we’ve got an amazing base to exhibit and sell Magneto to, but it also really qualifies us to understand what the other streamers want, and to make sure that everyone gets the Australian fair go on the platform.”
Mr Delany added that Magneto would improve on Foxtel’s user experience by bundling together different ways to watch a sport for example – through paid or free channels – and that the platform would be available as part of a puck initially with the possibility of the platform being made available to TV manufacturers who are currently running.
As for the scale of Magento Delany said “It’s starting to get quite advanced, it’s a very big project because there’s code being written by Comcast and Sky and that’s why we’re grateful to have a partner with huge world scale,”
“Because Australia and every country is quite unique, there’s stuff being written for us in the user interface that will be unique to us. And then we have to do all of the back of house stuff. There’s a new billing and customer management system being built just for this because we need something a bit more sophisticated than we have for Kayo and Binge.
“And we’re having to do the integration of all of our partners.”
“For example, if it’s been done for Disney or Netflix, elsewhere in the Comcast world, it’s very easy to bring that along. But for apps that are unique to us, like for example some of the free-to-air apps, they have to be built from ground up. But it’s certainly something that I can go and look at as working on a glass TV or on one of our Magneto pucks. It’s starting to come to life.