The ongoing digital migration and the resulting audience fragmentation have led to rating losses at RTL and ProSieben, but with the latter retaining its younger viewers. From a low base global operators are gaining share

Leveraging their high market shares within a benign economic environment means RTL and ProSieben are in a position to withstand the increasing competition. ProSieben has been more active in developing diversification businesses – on which we have mixed feelings

The main extra growth prospects are in the distribution fees charged to TV platforms for HD channels, allowing a progressive shift to a mixed funding model

As we expected, Canal+ won the broadcast rights to the Ligue 1 top three weekly games in 2016-20 and beIN Sports have the seven remaining fixtures Sensibly, the two competitors avoided a bidding war but ended up paying 28% more than the 2012-16 agreement – the first substantial increase since 2005 The new contract will help Canal+ sustain pricing and marketing. Meanwhile, even if it completely lost the ongoing Champions’ League auction, Canal+’s football prominence would remain

Amazon has entered the increasingly crowded digital entertainment TV device marketplace, one which could be strategically more important for the ecommerce giant than tech rivals Apple and Google

The frictionless integration of entertainment and ecommerce on TV represents a bigger consumer milestone than competitor services are offering, and Amazon’s brand has huge appeal, though at present it has less market traction for streaming than it does for other products

Content owners and broadcasters remain the real TV gatekeepers, with integration of TV and digital a service-level pipe dream for now, and so Amazon will likely have to accept being one of many, rather than the runaway winner as it is in books

The core US long form streaming subscription business, so vital to Netflix prospects of long term global as well as domestic success as competition increases, shows no sign of slowing, while guidance points to Q1 2014 as another strong quarter Although market research indicates a positive brand image, boosted by Netflix’s entry into original content commissions, Netflix cannot afford to slacken in its efforts to build its subscriber base due to strong upward competitive pressures on content obligations Content delivery is the other big cost challenge. There is no guarantee that the recent deal with Comcast will last, as the leading ISPs contend with conflicts of interest that arise from wishing to support the traditional model of linear TV but also to exploit the potential of long form online video

Newspaper apps have very quickly become a critical means for publishers to optimise consumer dwell time in digital, and cement an integrated digital subscription service

In common with apps in other markets, they are evolving, with new business models and usability solutions emerging relentlessly, while challenges including mobile advertising and the integration of video with text-based content are far from resolved

Unsettled consumer discovery and interaction, and continued innovation by platforms and services on top, provides a mercurial environment for publishers, bringing opportunities for specialist and leading services that develop agile iterations, and increasing the existential threat for many others

A key milestone in the UK’s Local TV initiative, London Live is also the country’s first integrated TV, newspaper and digital service, providing a unique prism through which to glimpse aspects of the future of its news, entertainment and advertising industries. 

History does not point to a successful outcome, but rapidly evolving consumer behaviour and technologies legitimately position London Live as a genuinely new, favourably timed proposition – albeit with no guarantee of even relatively modest success.

In the rollout of Local TV, London Live is alone, with neither its success nor its failure providing more than very limited guidance for the rest of the country’s local TV services; but it is nonetheless a major London media launch.

Japan’s RIAJ reported a 15% decline in trade revenues in 2013 on the 13% decline in CD and music video sales, still representing 87% of trade revenues

Digital trade revenues fell 23% on collapsing mobile sales; internet DTO revenues were up 24% and subscription revenues trebled to $31 million

UMG, WMG and even Sony each have limited exposure to Japan, where domestic labels dominate. Avex and other publishers exploit J-pop through 360 degree contracts with acts and enjoy robust concert and merchandising revenues

This report on the digital transformation of the creative industries in the UK was produced by Enders Analysis and research partner Bain & Company, to support the Creative UK event organised by Enders Analysis and held at the BT Centre on 18 March 2104. The event is sponsored by BT, Enders Analysis, Bain & Company, Powerscourt and Shine Group. 

 The UK’s rate of business creation since 2010 has been especially strong relative to other major economies, backed by a solid trend to self-employment. Business creation in the creative industries  – music, film, television, advertising, the arts, book and newspaper publishing - has been a major contributor, up 17% since 2010.  

Underpinned by a generation of investment in broadband, digital technology is changing how many creative-sector companies produce and distribute products. But experiences vary widely:  

• For advertising and marketing companies, the transition has had a benign impact on revenue; online’s share of total advertising was at 36% in 2012, placing the UK in the vanguard of digital advertising
• Television has remained relatively resilient to disintermediation by the internet and TV remains the single biggest advertising medium
• Consumer-facing newspapers have undergone a painful transition as pennies from digital replace pounds from print and ad sales
• Recorded music sales halved in the decade to 2013, but digital accounted for 50% of revenues in 2013, and the corner has been turned; artist management is being transformed by the use of online media
• New online pure play businesses have sprung up, like Rightmove and Zoopla Property Group, AutoTrader, LoveFilm and Spotify
• The crafts industries have been transformed by online marketplaces like Etsy, which allow them to serve their customers wherever they may be
• YouTube is emerging as an important outlet for UK creative talents 

Strong growth in UK sales of mobile devices in 2013, with tablet shipments overtaking declining PC sales, pushed smartphone and tablet penetration up to about 63% and 35% respectively, in line with our forecasts.

We estimate that mobile devices now account for 50% of time spent online in the UK, the lion’s share via apps, reaching this milestone sooner than expected. Mobile internet usage looks set for further growth in 2014 and beyond, with PC-based consumption flattening.

After a slow start mobile monetisation is also rising fast, with UK advertising and e-commerce to mobile devices accelerating and closing the gap with that on the PC. We expect much, if not all, future growth in commercial internet revenues to be driven by mobile devices.

The French Professional Football League (LFP) is to auction its 2016-20 broadcasting rights next month, one year earlier than expected. The anticipated auction (and short notice) increases pressure on rival LFP broadcasters – a failure to renew their existing rights deals would unsettle their position for over two years

Due to uncertainty over the future ownership of Canal+ and the political background of Al Jazeera’s beIN Sports we believe that both would prefer to maintain the status quo: the top two weekly games on Canal+ and the other eight on beIN Sports

The LFP rights are precisely packaged to prevent this, and to force the two to compete at least for one lot. As the market leader Canal+ has more to lose, while beIN Sports could sustain its current complementary positioning with fewer games