On 19th July, we took over Google’s Campus building in Shoreditch to host the latest TechTalk Live. This time, Zeebox CEO, Anthony Rose took to the stage to explore what the future holds for TV and in particular, the role of the second screen.
Take a look of the first video below to see the highlights of the night or the second to see the full version of Anthony’s presentation.
Highlights:
Full video:
Aside from excitement related to the Olympic Games (see previous blog post), the British nation is feeling a bit sorry for itself. At the end of April 2012, it was declared to be in a double-dip recession and the unemployment rate over Q4FY11 was at its highest since 1995. Pretty grim, and this is for a nation which doesn’t always see the glass half full at the best of times.
All this has had a substantial impact on UK retail; a -2.3% slump was reported at the end of Q1FY12. The Technical Consumer Goods (TCG) market in particular was extremely disappointing (according to the latest TEMAX report (1) ). Market volume fell by -7.2% year-on-year which was the lowest Q1 turnover in the past four years. The only growth was in the IT industry, which is largely attributable to innovation.
Online advertising is a big deal; in 2011 approximately £4.8bn was spent in the UK alone on this medium, a rise of over 14 percent on 2010[1]. The biggest growth area within this is the Real Time Bidding (RTB) market. RTB allows advertisers to specify a consumer type they want to target, the site they want to target them on, and then bid against competitors to display their particular ad. This happens at a rate of billions of slots for ads being auctioned every day[2], and has led to the creation of a highly complex and extremely rewarding system, both for advertising agencies, and the businesses which use them. However, the problem is that like any complex and established system, it is at risk of disruption if the underpinnings of this system start to unravel. New technology is emerging which begs the question, is that disruption about to occur?
Recent data from GfK indicates that the social-networking revolution is having a significant impact on businesses and how they operate. Businesses are waking up to the importance of social networks in shaping their online image and the opportunities they provide in reaching out to new clients and employees. The key challenge is how to make the most of this ever-evolving space.
Changing attitudes to social networking
Gone are the days when social networking meant simply adding friends and family on Facebook and posting photos from last night’s work do. Social networking is getting serious. The rise of Twitter (and others) has given social networking a more complete identity. Beyond just a social tool, it is now also a platform for news consumption and a vital marketing resource for businesses. This is demonstrated by the emergence of dedicated business sites such as Viadeo and LinkedIn, designed specifically as a resource for business purposes and the increasing importance companies are placing on marketing activities in this area.
