Operators need to take ownership of the second screen

Pay TV platforms and channel operators need to work together to provide second screen services and content or risk letting OTT players take market share, according to Informa Telecoms & Media.

The level of personalisation that second screen services offer can drive deeper engagement and pay TV operators can benefit from this, strengthening customer relationships and generating new revenue, chiefly from advertising, which can be synced with ads on the main TV screen or targeted at specific user demographics within operators’ companion apps, Informa notes in a briefing on second screen strategies for pay TV operators.

“Informa Telecoms & Media believes that continued cooperation and collaboration between pay TV providers and broadcasters in the new second-screen era will provide the best route to success for all those in TV value chain seeking to benefit from this important new trend,” notes Informa senior analyst Ted Hall. “Operators that fail to take ownership of the second screen will open the door to new OTT players in TV looking to exploit the increasing prevalence of connected devices to gain a foothold in the premium-content-distribution market.”