Looking at the Media Evolution in Africa A Presentation by Amir Jahangir at the BBC Media Leaders Conference in South Africa

1. Management Ideas:
Delivering on the potential of
digital transformation
Amir Jahangir
Media Leaders, Johannesburg, South Africa
18-19 November 2019
Amir Jahangir | @amirjahangir | aj@mishal.com.pk Mark Kaigwa | @MKaigwa | mark@nendo.co.ke

2. Management Challenges
• The global television industry is in the midst of a digital (r)evolution.
• Online video has been spreading like wildfire, empowering
consumers to watch what they want when they want it, sometimes
cutting TV out of the equation altogether.
• Budgets are shrinking with the shift in content consumptions
• Networks, with their long legacy of linear programming (that is,
airing news, sports, and entertainment at set times), are fighting to
stay relevant.
• Cable and satellite companies, too, have seen their traditional
bundles come under attack from a slew of streaming à la carte
offerings.
• Content producers are scrambling to develop hit shows that can
help networks and digital aggregators differentiate themselves and
capitalize on evolving consumer preferences.

3. THE KEY ENABLERS OF THE NEW ONLINE DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM
Content rights and production have always been the name of the game—and all
relationships within the industry have revolved around this critical piece of the puzzle.
Each advance intensified competition among all the participants in the value chain.
But even with all these changes, incumbents were able to coexist and, for the most
part, thrive. And the core sources of value within the industry stayed the same.
The television industry has a long history of incremental evolution:
black-and-white
gave way to color,
big boxes slimmed
into flat screens,
3 channels
ballooned into 300,
networks made
room for cable and
satellite, and
now all three are
making room for
online and mobile
platforms.

4. THE KEY ENABLERS OF THE NEW ONLINE
DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM
Advances in Technology.
• The robust fixed-broadband infrastructure that is needed to
meet the demand for online video is spreading fast.
• For users who are on the go, improvements in wireless
connectivity have enabled greater access to digital content,
and devices that can access mobile video have saturated the
market.
• By 2020, the number of tablets and Internet-connected, or
smart, TV sets will be more than 1 billion worldwide.
Streaming video has advanced to the point that it is now
viewed as a direct threat to traditional TV.

5. THE KEY ENABLERS OF THE NEW ONLINE
DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM
Increasing Availability of High-Quality Online Content.
• Traditional studios have begun to invest in online productions,
allowing viewers to access a wealth of excellent programming
when and where they want it.
• To make matters more interesting, global tech leaders are
bringing disruptive models to the market. Amazon.com,
Apple, and Google have all launched online-streaming devices
to supplement their video-streaming services, and all three
have commissioned original content as well. The abundance
of high-quality online content has attracted consumers and
encouraged the shift from linear viewing to
on-demand, time-shifted viewing.

6. THE KEY ENABLERS OF THE NEW ONLINE
DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM
Development of New, Low-Cost Content-Production Models.
• Digital studios and semipro content creators are challenging
the belief that high-quality content must be expensive.
• Top-tier network entertainment programs can draw 10 million
to 15 million viewers and cost up to $5 million per episode,
and top-tier cable shows—at up to $3 million per episode—
routinely draw millions of viewers.
• By comparison, the top YouTube channels have proved they
can drive millions of views for less than $30,000 per episode.

7. WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?

8. The Fourth Industrial Revolution

9. Changing Industry
Dynamics

11. Workflow Disruptions
• Reporters will spend less time on
repetitive tasks and grunt work.
• Streamlining workflows,
automating mundane tasks,
crunching more data, digging out
insights and generating additional
outputs
• With AI powered news collection,
journalists will serve as editorial
gatekeepers.
• AI enabled newsrooms will allow
reporters to engage in more
complex and qualitative work.
• Creativity will become the
Currency of respect

12. Changing Trends
Cameraman, DSNGs Operators, Technical Resource Person,
Reporters, Anchors - Extinct
A New Breed of Journalists
Freelancers - Citizen Journalists -Training and Implication
Entrepreneurs - “Mediapreneurs”
The conventional media and the regulators are still stuck in
2nd Industrial Revolution

14. Change Caused by Digital Transformation -
Society 5.0

15. The Big Idea
Artificial Intelligence in the Newsroom
AI to learn the social media and internet trends of a broad spectrum of audience.

17. Artificial Intelligence in Newsrooms
ANALYZE DATA IDENTIFY
PATTERNS AND
TRENDS
ACTIONABLE
INSIGHTS FROM
MULTIPLE
SOURCES
SEE THINGS
THAT THE
HUMAN EYE
CAN’T SEE
UNDERSTAND
SENTIMENT

18. Innovation on the Horizon – Impacts of AI on News
AI technologies are
opening-up new
territories and
transforming journalism.
New solutions to the
challenges of the digital
revolution.
Imperative to save time
and money in an era of
shifting economics.
Find ways to keep pace
with the growing scale
and scope of the news
itself.
With social networks
expanding the news
ecosystem, news
organizations need to
keep constant track of
what’s trending among
news consumers in real
time.
The BIG Change: Media
becomes the listening
tool on How you Feel on
What is happening
around When it happens
NOW!

19. Workflow Disruptions
Reporters will spend less time
on repetitive tasks and grunt
work.
Streamlining workflows,
automating mundane tasks,
crunching more data, digging
out insights and generating
additional outputs
With AI powered news
collection, journalists will serve
as editorial gatekeepers.
AI enabled newsrooms will
allow reporters to engage in
more complex and qualitative
work.
Technology
changes, journalism
doesn’t

20. The Future
of
Journalism
is….
Participatory
and
Collaborative
Based on
Entrepreneurial
Model
Individuals to
work not as
employees but
in partnership
with media
organizations
Leading to a
Trust-based
People Centric
Economy

21. “The future of journalism is bright,
the question is, are you a part of it?”