Weekly notes 10/09-10/16

Interview with Dennis Quinn
EVP Business Development
TBS

Highlights:

Consumers don’t interact the same way with different types of media distribution platforms, i.e. broadband, wireless, VOD, etc. For CNN to be successful with those various platforms, it needed to understand user expectations and act on them. With TV, for example, there’s little interaction; whereas on a Web site there’s more opportunity for navigation and seeking out of information. Knowing user behavior helps define CNN.com how to achieve the best value possible out of its product.

TV-viewing is a leaning backwards experience, while Internet news Web site browsing is a leaning forward experience. Wireless products are designed to be digested quickly – only then they will have the strongest value proposition for both consumers and businesses.

It is important to take into the account of business development various cultural and technological habits and developments. In the U.S., mobile technology is not digested as quickly, as in other parts of the world, and Asia in particular. While the general value proposition is transparent – this technology helps people stay in touch and access news on the go – the reception of this technology by users differs from one part of the globe to another.

In Asia, as well as in Europe, there’s one uniform standard for mobile technology, while in the U.S. there are several. As an international operations company, CNN has to take a close look at such instances when evaluating its value propositions.

On the other hand, there’s no such preponderance of cable in Asia and Europe, as there’s in the U.S.; therefore, the natural inclination of users to go mobile in those parts of the world is far higher than in the U.S.

Depending on the market and cultural tendencies, CNN launches products that have the potential of having the highest value possible, therefore, supporting the business model’s core; which in turn translates into higher revenue numbers.

CNN started delving into broadband in the early stages of its penetration. This was predicated by the fast-growing development of broadband and its availability to genera; audiences. Nowadays, more than 60% of households in the U.S. use broadband, and CNN,com is the number one news site, according to Nielsen/Net Ratings.

When the company launched its broadband initiatives, it exhibited its “firstness” phenomenon, while following business calculations on how profitable this new medium can be in the future. Both the “firstness” and careful analysis of the business and technological environments allowed CNN to be the first on the broadband front, which paid off in establishing a highly-desirable for advertisers and significant in size audience.

The product is delivered to various platforms in the CNN’s style and fashion: promptly and accurately. The ubiquity of CNN is reflected 24/7 on all major distribution platforms: be it a PDA, a laptop or a TV set. There’s SMS and e-mail alerts to reach users that are not in front of their TV sets.

Establishing this ubiquity early on, now allows CNN to distribute its product effectively from both reach and cost perspectives; therefore, establishing value to both consumers and businesses. This is also effective from the cost perspective, as distributing the same product via different channels doesn’t cost as much as creating different product for different platforms.