The media industry is being transformed by technology. While television isn’t dead, it is rapidly changing in the way that we consume and distribute it.
John Martin, chairman and chief operating officer of Turner, is the best person to know about television’s transformation. Turner is a Time Warner company that includes news, entertainment, and sports networks, as well businesses such as CNN, TBS TNT, Cartoon Network and Turner Sports.
Martin’s main focus as CEO is Turner’s technological transformation. We are transforming the company from being a traditional ad-supported basic network cable company that cared about getting reach and maximizing viewership to, all of a sudden, the metrics that really matter being fan engagement and number of fans, John Martin said at CornellTech@Bloomberg led by Scarlett Fu, the anchor of Bloomberg Markets.
We need viewers and fans. At the hub we are highlighting that sensibility with technology.
Martin works to ensure Turner stays at the forefront. He has invested and partnered with cutting-edge content and digital media startups.
Engaging fans is vital
It was crucial to upgrade Turner’s content management system in order to maximize fan engagement. Martin was appointed CEO in 2014. In 2014, the United States had 29 content management system that could not interact with each other and didn’t have data. Turner has developed technology that allows broadcast TV, content libraries, apps, and other media to be moved to the Cloud. This allows Turner to “reach out to fans in innovative and new ways.”
“We no longer consider ourselves a TV network company. Martin said that the company is a fan engagement firm. We need to be able, no matter where our fans are located, to reach them seamlessly, regardless of whether they’re in South Korea, London, or Dallas.
Martin stated, That’s been a really enjoyable part of my job, which was to make significant investments to use technology to support all else we are doing in producing premium content.
Personalized content is here
Turner will soon be able use technology to provide personalized content that is tailored to individual preferences. “Personalized networking will revolutionize how people experience media. Martin stated, “Personalized networking will take on-demand to a whole new level.” Martin added that the content you watch will become increasingly personalized to you.
Martin used Spotify as an example to illustrate that Turner wants to add that level of customization and control to video. As the technology develops, it will be possible to create content lists, archive it and put it into libraries. Then, you can access it whenever and wherever you want. You can also have different streams of live streaming if you don’t desire to do it in an on-demand manner.
Customer experience is vital
The long-running debate over which content or distribution is the king has been ongoing. Martin says it’s neither, and that content, distribution and the consumer experience are the best trifecta.
Turner is a premium company that creates content. It’s essential to tell great stories and produce great content. Martin however understands that technology can also be used for the creation and distribution of content. “I want Turner to be known as a company that employs the best technologists and the brightest,” he stated, noting the importance in hiring people who have product experience.
It is essential to program your device specifically
Martin views an increasing number of media via his phone, and he’s certainly not the only one. Martin believes that mobile views are growing rapidly and will continue to be one of media’s most exciting growth areas.
Mobile usage is growing rapidly, so it’s vital to make content that will be consumed by your target audience. Martin stated that CNN TV, CNN on Mobile, and CNN Digital are not the same thing. The CNN brand is different because it can be expressed differently on different devices.
Turner has dedicated staff that works on both the mobile and app social media platforms. Martin says that we need to have people with different expertise as my daughter’s experience watching CNN on Snapchat is quite different from someone who watches it on TV.
Martin also believes that artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality offer huge opportunities for technology to transform the way we consume media. Turner sold virtual reality tickets to March Madness, and the team has also created content for CNN, E-Sports, and gaming. Martin explained that virtual reality can be a game-changer if media companies create unique experiences.
The media industry is being transformed by technology. While television isn’t dead, it is rapidly changing in the way that we consume and distribute it.
John Martin, chairman and chief operating officer of Turner, is the best person to know about television’s transformation. Turner is a Time Warner company that includes news, entertainment, and sports networks, as well businesses such as CNN, TBS TNT, Cartoon Network and Turner Sports.
Martin’s main focus as CEO is Turner’s technological transformation. “We are transforming the company from being a traditional ad-supported basic network cable company that cared about getting reach and maximizing viewership to, all of a sudden, the metrics that really matter being fan engagement and number of fans,” John Martin said at CornellTech@Bloomberg led by Scarlett Fu, the anchor of Bloomberg Markets.
We need viewers and fans. At the hub we are highlighting that sensibility with technology.
Martin works to ensure Turner stays at the forefront. He has invested and partnered with cutting-edge content and digital media startups.
The full conversation can be viewed here
Here are some key messages from the conversation.
Engaging fans is vital
It was crucial to upgrade Turner’s content management system in order to maximize fan engagement. Martin was appointed CEO in 2014. In 2014, the United States had 29 content management system that could not interact with each other and didn’t have data. Turner has developed technology that allows broadcast TV, content libraries, apps, and other media to be moved to the Cloud. This allows Turner to “reach out to fans in innovative and new ways.”
We no longer consider ourselves a TV network company. Martin said that the company is a fan engagement firm. We need to be able, no matter where our fans are located, to reach them seamlessly, regardless of whether they’re in South Korea, London, or Dallas.
Martin stated, “That’s been a really enjoyable part of my job, which was to make significant investments to use technology to support all else we are doing in producing premium content.”
Personalized content is here
Turner will soon be able use technology to provide personalized content that is tailored to individual preferences. “Personalized networking will revolutionize how people experience media. Martin stated, “Personalized networking will take on-demand to a whole new level.” Martin added that the content you watch will become increasingly personalized to you.
Martin used Spotify as an example to illustrate that Turner wants to add that level of customization and control to video. As the technology develops, it will be possible to create content lists, archive it and put it into libraries. Then, you can access it whenever and wherever you want. You can also have different streams of live streaming if you don’t desire to do it in an on-demand manner.
Customer experience is vital
The long-running debate over which content or distribution is the king has been ongoing. Martin says it’s neither, and that content, distribution and the consumer experience are the best trifecta.
Turner is a premium company that creates content. It’s essential to tell great stories and produce great content. Martin however understands that technology can also be used for the creation and distribution of content. “I want Turner to be known as a company that employs the best technologists and the brightest,” he stated, noting the importance in hiring people who have product experience.
It is essential to program your device specifically
Martin views an increasing number of media via his phone, and he’s certainly not the only one. Martin believes that mobile views are growing rapidly and will continue to be one of media’s most exciting growth areas.
Mobile usage is growing rapidly, so it’s vital to make content that will be consumed by your target audience. Martin stated that CNN TV, CNN on Mobile, and CNN Digital are not the same thing. The CNN brand is different because it can be expressed differently on different devices.
Turner has dedicated staff that works on both the mobile and app social media platforms. Martin says that we need to have people with different expertise as my daughter’s experience watching CNN on Snapchat is quite different from someone who watches it on TV.
Martin also believes that artificial intelligence, virtual reality and augmented reality offer huge opportunities for technology to transform the way we consume media. Turner sold virtual reality tickets to March Madness, and the team has also created content for CNN, E-Sports, and gaming. Martin explained that virtual reality can be a game-changer if media companies create unique experiences.
