HITS

For more than a decade now, the media industry has been at the forefront of the cloud-computing economy, streaming movies, games, and other content into living rooms everywhere.

Indeed, some of the biggest companies — Amazon and Google come to mind — are the cloud.

But to riff off Billy Crystal/Miracle Max in The Princess Bride: Many media companies today are only mostly in the cloud. And there’s a big difference between mostly in the cloud and all in the cloud.

Indeed, the picture is a bit mixed. Yes, content and services are delivered to the consumer mostly in the cloud today. Even content creation (production, post, and localization) has moved increasingly to the cloud — a trend that accelerated during the pandemic.

But when it comes to business and administrative functions in the media industry, the move to the cloud is just beginning.

The cloud is good for customers

Media companies moved content distribution to the cloud to deliver better customer experiences. The cloud gives you the control needed to deliver these experiences consistently. It also gives you the visibility needed to monitor experiences in real time. And when it comes to agility, the cloud can’t be beat. Media companies depend on cloud agility to innovate with new features and keep up with constantly changing customer expectations.

Yet on the business side of the equation, systems remain on premise, and processes remain largely disconnected. Think about your important “back-office” processes – such as planning, finance, supply chain, logistics, and more. Moving these to the cloud can give you the control, visibility, and business agility needed to compete more effectively at an important inflection point for the media industry.

The fact is the pandemic experience has accelerated trends in media that were already happening. The future is now here. It’s no longer deniable, for instance, that virtually all content — blockbuster movies included — can be profitable on a home-streaming model. Traditional windows are gone or changed dramatically.

Which is why many movies already are going straight to the small screen and business models have been adopted to make this work for consumers and content owners alike.

As consumption patterns have changed, media companies have been scrambling to change to attract new customers. At the same time, industry consolidation is moving ahead at full speed as streaming platforms proliferate and the competition for eyeballs grows increasingly intense.

The cloud is good for business, too

To survive in this new media landscape, you need to be agile. You need ways to seize new opportunities more efficiently and effectively, collaborate with partners, and go after new markets.

Of course, content is still king — we can’t lose sight of this reality. But leading players in today’s maturing industry realize the importance of achieving operational efficiencies in the back office. Why? Because streamlining business processes in the cloud can free up time, money, and energy to focus on creating the best content.

Moving to the cloud can also make you more agile as a business. Cloud solutions are like LEGO blocks – but instead of interlocking studs and tubes, the cloud uses APIs. These aid integration and extend business process capabilities. If you want to work with new partners, the cloud makes it easier. Or if you acquire a new media company and it is already in the cloud, integrating that new acquisition into your company is all that much easier — which helps you move faster as a business.

Move to the cloud for business speed and agility

The Olympics is one of the biggest media events imaginable – so let’s take an analogy from one of my favorite sports: track and field.

Being in the cloud is like having the advantages of sprinter Usain Bolt in the 100-meter dash. Remaining on premise with yesterday’s technology is like running next to Bolt with a fat tractor tire chained to your waist. Maybe you’re a great runner. Maybe you’re even good enough to win the race — all things being equal, that is. But with that weight holding you back, you don’t even stand a chance.

So, back to Miracle Max: There’s a big difference between mostly in the cloud and all in the cloud. To maximize your advantage, you’ve got to be all in.

Learn more

This blog is the first in a series that will look at what “moving to the cloud” means for traditional business processes in the media industry and how the best companies are finding ways to become nimbler and deliver the most for their customers by moving these processes to the cloud.

Stay tuned for more to come.

Meanwhile, to dive in deeper, join us for a webcast on how the cloud is reshaping the business landscape of the media industry. Register here.

This is the first in a series of industry insights from SAP for MESA’s readership

* By Julie Stoughton, Global Head of Media Industry Marketing, SAP