For the fifth consecutive year, Dubrovnik will not be remembered only as the best tourist destination or filming site, but, for four days, it will become the center of the finest debates on the future and the development of television. New Europe Market is a media event which hosts the leading experts in television and media, and the panel discussion on FTA channels’ ability to survive among the increasingly large competition will feature one of the most distinguished panelists of this year’s NEM: Antenna International’s managing director Pete Smith.
Survival or equal participation
When the future of television was discussed in the past, the prognoses for linear television were not optimistic. In this new era of television in which we have not only Pay-TV channels, but also subscription services such as Netflix, Pickbox and Hulu, FTA channels are still not as forgotten as we thought they would be. In spite of the fact that the technological barriers between the old and the new players in the TV industry are decreasing year in, year out, the question remains of whether the technological novelties in the market could help the traditional linear TV channels to retain their viewership. Although it is faced with a number of challenges, traditional television has been strengthened by new technologies, but does it need to become available on demand in order to retain its viewership? To which degree do FTA channels need to adapt to the market to stay relevant? Could content perhaps be the deciding factor that transcends platforms and keeps the viewers interested?
Pete Smith as one of the most prominent panelists
One of the most prominent attendees of NEM 2017 will be Pete Smith, the former president of NBC Universal International. His legacy at the NBC includes securing a growth of 44% in a three-year period, an increase in the number of channels from 12 to 70 and a Pay-TV channel worth $500 million, as well as a growth from $5 to $100 million in a three-year period. Pete is currently the director of Antenna International, where he manages their European network. The organization focuses on the fast development of media in Eastern Europe and on investments in programming and digital companies.
Pete Smith was an NEM panelist in previous years and he sings the praises of this conference, which hosts both regional and international experts:
“NEM is the most useful regional conference in Eastern Europe. The quality of the panels and the delegates is high. A “must” for the diary.”
NEM as the beginning of a successful business story
The media evolve day after day, new players in the market are looking to get their slice of the cake, while the old ones are trying to adapt to the novelties in the market and stay relevant. You can learn about the changes in the media world at this year’s New Europe Market, which will take place in Dubrovnik on the 12th – 15th June. This year’s edition of the conference will be the fifth consecutive one and the speakers in the panel discussions will, as every year, include renowned experts in the media world with decades of practical experience in this sector.
In addition to the panels and the market, every NEM attendee can participate in informal gatherings, exchange ideas and make business deals. If you have even an ounce of doubt about this, remember that, at NEM 2016, the producers of the Croatian show The Paper sold the distribution rights to the Israeli production company Keshet. NEM was, indeed, the beginning of a beautiful and successful story!
