MIPTV Highlights 2013
MIPTV Highlights 2013
This year’s MIPTV marked the event’s 50th anniversary.
As MIPblog observed, “In Thursday’s wrap-up session, there was a feeling of optimism that TV was moving in the right direction”.
The event had lived up to MIPTV’s billing; there was satisfaction that a lot of serious work had been achieved.
Looking back on the week, several key themes stood out:
TV Series were everywhere. 20minutes.fr observed simply “…series are featuring constant growth in homes throughout the entire world”.
In a Le Monde Hors-Série out to coincide with MIPTV, writer Martin Winckler attempts an explanation: “watching a series is not exclusively a pastime, it’s a way of learning about and embracing the world”, but then so is a lot of TV!
Branded content was an all-pervasive topic. Abigail Marks, Strategy Director at Ogilvy Entertainment, enthused (with a trace of surprise?) “people pay to see it” and suggested the time had come to drop the adjective “branded” and just talk of “content” or “entertainment” – revolutionary when you think about it!
Indeed, Marks and media commentator Kate Bulkley agreed there was a thorny question of “the line between editorial and advertising” that has yet to be fully addressed.
Red Bull Media House CCO, Alexander Koppel, accompanied daredevil personality, Felix Baumgartner, the human sonic boom, for a Mastermind Keynote Session. Koppel said that Red Bull is responsible for some 1000 events (600 hours of vision time) each year, explaining “the aim is to win the true and full attention of the audience”, to supply “dreams and visions” and to be “an editorial content provider”.
MIPCube, a MIP within MIPTV, aims to “reinvent the content experience… with its emphasis on brands shifting from traditional advertising to a holistic brand experience”.
It’s program features a “Brand of the Year” award to “a brand and its agency for the creation and strategic use of video in branded entertainment”.
This year’s winner was ‘The Creators Project’ -a global arts partnership between Intel and Vice Media.
“Traditional advertising, as we know it, doesn’t work anymore. Or at least isn’t as efficient as content,” said Vice Media’s Benjamin Ruth. “Branded entertainment is far more effective when it comes to communication with your audience.”
Immersive experience was as hot as brands: “Monsieur Publicity”, Jacques Seguela, was at MIP in his capacity as Creative Partner, UN Information Centre for W.Europe, to launch a major UN initiative aimed at bringing 60 million primary-aged children into school. He took time out for a wide-ranging interview, as usual packing huge issues into one succinct phrase: We are at “the end of the dictatorship of communication”, now seeing its “liberation in the form of participative democracy”.
“It’s all about deciding how your content appears, being able to directly involve your friends, thinking transmedia…” said Louise Heinrich, of Superhuman Limited, “if the experience is rich, people choose the pay option rather than pirating. Look at Spotify Premium…”
Kate Bulkley’s top trend of the week was MAGINE (a Swedish digital service) “facilitating access to broadcast content so that you can select programs on your Smartphone.”
“You can imagine your granny using it” joked (?) Mipblog’s James Martin. Could this become the standard of acceptability for the hesitant?!
Less enthusiastic for the ‘full experience’ was Marc-André Lemoine writing in the ‘Journal de Montreal’ and concluding that much of it was “Ridiculous” and “Hyperstimulation”, in a thought-provoking article you can find at
http:www.jounaldemontreal.com/2013/04/12/regarder-la-tele-c’est-du-sport (in French).
Tech future leaders were:
‘The latest 3D screens’ session. Curiously, “3D is imposing its presence more on the TV front than at the cinema”.
A ‘supersession’ on ULTRA TVHD with its 4K imagery (3840x2160 pixels), under test currently and with launch plans for 2015.
"More than just the next step …. offers spectacular detail… opens the possibility for a whole new way of shooting... MIPTV aims to make producers aware that 4K is here, and it's now, they have to plan for it," said Laurine Garaude, Director of Reed MIDEM's Television Division.
By the end of a full 4-day program, there was nevertheless a parting impression that the spark that could/should have been ignited for a 50th anniversary celebration seemed to have been missing.
Nice Matin had used the word “disappointment” the first day, referring to the presence of few international celebrities and stars.
“A lot less sexy than the Film Festival”, remarked a reporter on 20minutes.fr.
Fair comment or not? If so, how to react?
A bigger role for the non-European non-Anglo-Saxon international dimension, new prestigious awards recognizing creativity outside brand content, more big name speakers from wider fields….?
There are lots of big topics and issues for the TV and on-line universe in the coming year and for MIPTV 2014.
BE READY with your ideas, ENSURE your reservations!