Michael Hoff is a veteran producer who has delivered more than 1,000 hours of mainly male-targeted Factual Entertainment to dozens of clients.
Michael shares his 5 Top Takeaways for 2019… focusing on how the shift to streaming is changing the ways that cable channels commission programs.
Listen to Hoff Productions’ Michael Hoff (25 min)
Michael Hoff’s 2019 Takeaways
1. SVOD Editorial Will Continue to Impact Cable
- More and more we here Cable network execs referring to the approach and style of an SVOD program as their template for something they aspire to.
- The big influencers and ideas are coming out of SVOD.
2. Well Known Long-Running Series Will Fade Out
- Cable networks have been playing it safe for two years now.
- Their strategy is an occasional big swing followed by re-upping episodes of old tried and true series.
- Consequently, they’ve over invested in the past. Many of these series are clearly fading now.
- They need alternatives.
3. Cable Nets Will Continue to Consolidate and Merge With SVOD
- As Cable and SVOD continues to merge and consolidate, layoffs will continue as they streamline of corporate structures.
- We haven’t hit the end of the transition.
- The transformation will take another two to three years.
4. No Medium Size Companies – Either Big or Boutique
- You used to see independent production companies of all different sizes.
- These days you see many fewer production companies period.
- The ones who have survived have often been gobbled up into mega indies or they are smaller “boutique” companies.
- The reason? The cost of sale has dramatically increased.
- To survive you need either scale or almost no overhead.
5. Brick and Mortar Will Continue to Fade
- An HD online edit bay used to cost $1 million.
- Today you can have the same power, maybe more, for $50k or less.
- Also data movement speeds have dramatically increased.
- Having everyone in the same room to build a program is less and less necessary.
- Components of the process can be anywhere.
- This gives staff flexibility, allows companies to hire anyone anywhere, and keeps overhead costs down.
Snapshot: Hoff Productions
- Delivered more than a thousand hours to dozens of clients:
- Cab/Sat channels, including Discovery, Nat Geo and Animal Planet: 90%
- Commissions: 90%;
- Copros 10%
- Sponsored Content: 5%
- Broadcasters: 5%
- Longest returning series:
- Weird, True, & Freaky
- Animal Planet’s Monster Week
Previous Analysis
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